Pura Vida
by forensicsfan
Summary: Sequel to "La Vida Loca". NS. A single decision changed the direction of their lives, what happens now that they're back in the real world?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Don't own them, didn't create them, don't profit from them. Any original characters are mine.  
  
This is a sequel to "La Vida Loca".  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Sara, have you seen my black jeans?" Nick padded out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist in search of Sara. He had been about ready to step into the shower when he realized that he wasn't sure if the clothes he wanted to wear were clean.  
  
She glanced up at him from where she stood in the kitchen with her cup of coffee. A smile flickered across her face as she regarded his attire. "Nick, you have four or five pairs of black jeans, could you be a little more specific?"  
  
He flashed her a grin, still amazed that they were actually married. "Uh, any of them actually."  
  
She raised an eyebrow at him. "If they're not in your dresser, they're probably in the laundry." She smiled at him as she took another sip from her coffee.  
  
Nick had always considered himself a neat freak, but after he and Sara got married, he realized that she took neat to a whole new level. She had become fairly religious about doing their laundry and he was almost surprised that she hadn't taken an ALS unit to his condo before she moved her things in to make sure it was clean enough. A sheepish expression crossed his face. "I guess I'll be going khaki then."  
  
Sara looked at his current attire and smirked. "You would raise a few eyebrows around the lab if you wore that."  
  
Nick was a little distracted by the way Sara's pajama top was riding up each time she lifted the coffee cup to her lips and he didn't immediately make the connection. "What's wrong with khaki?"  
  
Sara giggled and set her coffee down, walking over towards him and leaning in to kiss him softly. "I was talking about the towel."  
  
He grinned against her lips and snaked his arms around her waist. "Sorry, I was a little distracted by your shirt."  
  
Sara looked at him skeptically. "My shirt."  
  
He nodded. "Uh, huh."  
  
She pursed her lips trying to suppress her smile. "Well that towel of yours is pretty distracting too."  
  
He raised an eyebrow mischievously. "Really?"  
  
She giggled. "Uh, huh."  
  
"We can't have that, now can we?" He smiled as he let go of her and took a step back.  
  
She looked at him suspiciously. "Just what are you doing?"  
  
His smile widened into a grin as he rested a hand on his hip where the edge of the towel was tucked in. "Just thought I'd try and remove the distraction."  
  
She pouted. "What if I like being distracted?"  
  
He chuckled. "Oh, so now you want to be distracted?"  
  
She giggled. "You're doing a fairly good job of it just standing there."  
  
He feigned a hurt expression. "A fairly good job? When I do something, I want to do it right, none of this half assed stuff."  
  
"Nick, what time is it?" Sara was suddenly aware that the whole reason that they were even out of bed was because they had to work that night.  
  
He waggled his eyebrows at her. "I still have plenty of time to distract you before it's time to go to work."  
  
She furrowed her brow. "Nick, we've been late to work just about every single day since we got back from Dallas and I think Grissom's patience is starting to wear a little thin."  
  
He wore a restrained smile with a hint of mischief. "So, you don't want me to distract you then?"  
  
She chuckled. "It's too late; I told you I'm already distracted by you wearing that towel."  
  
Nick grinned at her and let the towel drop to the floor. "Is that better?"  
  
She started to giggle. "You are impossible."  
  
He stepped towards her. "But you love me." He leaned in and kissed her.  
  
"I do love you." She murmured against his lips.  
  
"I know how we can kill two birds with one stone." Nick began kissing Sara's neck as he began pulling the hem of her pajama top upward.  
  
Sara's voice was breathy as she allowed him to pull her shirt off. "How?"  
  
He slid his hands to her waist and untied the drawstring on her pajama pants, letting them pool onto the floor. He continued kissing along her jaw line. "We'll even save water."  
  
"Ok." Sara murmured in response.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Nick and Sara were uncharacteristically early to work that night. When Warrick rounded the corner into the break room he did a double take. Everyone had gotten used to the newlyweds showing up just as shift was starting the last several weeks since they'd returned from Texas.  
  
Warrick chuckled. "Honeymoon must be over if you two are here already."  
  
Nick grinned. "We're just learning to multitask."  
  
Sara's face tinged a faint shade of pink as she glanced at Nick and raised an eyebrow in warning.  
  
Nick pressed on. "And we've even figured out how to save water in the process." He was fairly pleased with himself.  
  
"Alright then, I stand corrected." Warrick replied amused at Sara's reaction.  
  
Nick grinned. "The honeymoon will never be over between Sara and I." He turned toward her still grinning. "Isn't that right, babe?"  
  
Sara shot him a slightly exasperated look. "As long as you stop telling Warrick about our sex life, it's a sure bet."  
  
Nick finally registered the embarrassment on Sara's face and became instantly apologetic. "Honey, I'm sorry. I just didn't think."  
  
Sara's expression softened and she leaned toward him. "Just don't let it happen again."  
  
Nick's brow furrowed as he searched her face. "I'm sorry." He leaned in and kissed her briefly.  
  
Warrick started to chuckle. "Nick, man, you are so whipped."  
  
Nick smiled at Sara before glancing over at Warrick. "And enjoying every minute of it."  
  
"Enjoying every minute of what?" Catherine walked purposefully into the break room and headed straight to the coffee machine, trying to hide her surprise that Nick and Sara had arrived before everyone else.  
  
Nick grinned. "Being married to Sara."  
  
"Oh, baby, that's so sweet." Sara leaned over and kissed him on the cheek.  
  
Catherine tried to restrain a chuckle.  
  
Nick looked at Sara with an adoring expression. "You're sweet." He leaned in and gave her a soft kiss.  
  
Warrick cleared his throat. "It's a good thing Grissom decided against letting you two work crime scenes together for a while."  
  
Nick glanced up and grinned. "You're just jealous that I'm married to the most amazing woman on the planet."  
  
Sara grinned at him. "I love you, baby."  
  
"I love you too." He reached over and took Sara's hand, kissing the back of it and caressing it with his thumb.  
  
Warrick shook his head in amusement and glanced over at Catherine who was trying to keep her smile restrained. They were all still trying to get used to the fact that Nick and Sara were married.  
  
As Grissom finally walked in he glanced around the room raising his eyebrow curiously as he noticed Nick and Sara already there a good fifteen minutes before shift was scheduled to begin. "Oh, good, you're all here. It looks like it's going to be a busy night." 


	2. Chapter 2

Sara walked purposefully into the DNA lab in search of Greg Sanders. "Hey, Greggo." She smiled at the lab tech as he looked up at her from his workstation.  
  
Greg grinned at her. "To what do I owe a visit from the lovely Mrs. Stokes?"  
  
At the mention of her new last name, Sara couldn't help but smile. She was still getting used to being married. "I hear you're looking for a new place to live."  
  
"True." Greg continued working on the sample before him. He raised a curious eyebrow. "Surely there's not trouble in paradise. If Nick's done anything to hurt you, I'm your man."  
  
Sara chuckled softly and smirked. "No, paradise is doing just fine thank you. However, since Nick and I don't need two condos, we're renting mine out." She studied him for a moment. "Interested?"  
  
Greg considered the offer. "That's pretty close to the lab, isn't it?"  
  
Sara nodded. "And it has secure parking." She hoped that she didn't sound like she was overselling it.  
  
Greg concentrated on the slide under the microscope in front of him. "If you don't mind me asking, how come you're not selling it?"  
  
Sara furrowed her brow for a moment. "It hasn't built enough equity yet. If we sell now, we'll lose money."  
  
Greg smiled. "Sounds smart." He looked up a her from the microscope and smiled. "Sure, I'm interested. When can I look at it?"  
  
Sara grinned. "Nick and I were thinking we could all grab breakfast after shift and then go over there."  
  
Greg chuckled softly and then looked at her curiously. "Uh, just one thing. How do the neighbors feel about Marilyn Manson?"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
As Nick looked into a comparative microscope at a fiber he'd found at the crime scene he and Warrick processed earlier that night, he felt a pair of arms sliding around his waist from behind and a soft pair of lips pressing against his cheek. He tried to restrain a smile. "Warrick, Sara's going to get jealous, and honestly I'm not really your type."  
  
Sara giggled softly in his ear. "You knew it was me. Besides, you're not Warrick's type either. I have it on great authority that he likes women."  
  
Nick chuckled and turned his head to give Sara a quick kiss on the lips. "What's going on, babe?"  
  
She smiled as she loosened her hold on him and leaned her hip against the table. "Greg's going to look at the condo."  
  
He smiled. "That's great." He reached over and took her hand. "I suppose we should try and figure out what to do with the rest of the stuff in your condo."  
  
Sara's brow wrinkled as she made a mental checklist of all the things still sitting in her condo. "Maybe we should get a storage unit."  
  
He raised an eyebrow and smiled. "You know for someone who is as much of a neat freak as you are, you sure are a packrat."  
  
Sara wasn't sure how to respond to Nick's comment. "You have a lot of stuff too." There was a hint of a whine in her voice.  
  
Nick sensed that he was somehow suddenly treading on thin ice. "I was just making an observation, babe. It just surprises me, that's all."  
  
"But you think I should get rid of my stuff, don't you?" Sara crossed her arms in front of her body and looked at Nick with an accusatory expression.  
  
Nick wasn't sure what to say, but knew if he didn't say something, he was going to be in worse trouble than if he said the wrong thing. "I didn't say that, honey. We just need to get the rest of your things out of your condo if we're going to rent it out and we need to find someplace to put them."  
  
Sara wasn't really satisfied with his answer. "Well, there's not enough room to put it in your place and now that we're keeping both condos for a while, where am I supposed to put them?"  
  
Nick wasn't sure how, but it seemed that one innocent comment had begun to escalate into their first real married argument. He studied her for a moment and then let out a deep breath. "Sar, can we talk about this later? I don't want to fight when I'm not sure what it is that we're fighting about."  
  
Sara tilted her head slightly. "What do mean you don't know what we're fighting about?"  
  
Nick had a panicked look on his face. "I, uh, I'm confused. One minute we were talking about Greg looking at your condo and the next, you're mad at me. What did I do?"  
  
Sara looked a little indignant. "If you don't know, I'm not going to tell you." She looked pissed, but she also looked like she was about to cry.  
  
"Sara." Nick's tone pleaded with her. "Honey, I don't know what I did."  
  
"We'll talk about this later." She sniffled and turned on her heels and made a beeline down the hallway.  
  
Nick was left sitting there with a perplexed expression on his face wondering what in the world had just happened. He was still sitting there, thoroughly confused when Catherine walked in.  
  
"Nick." Catherine noticed his confused look when he looked up.  
  
"Huh?" He looked at her still mulling over what had transpired between him and Sara and wondering what he'd said to upset her so much.  
  
Catherine looked concerned. "Nicky, are you ok?"  
  
He furrowed his brow. "I don't know. I think I said something that upset Sara, but I have no idea what it was."  
  
Catherine's lip twitched upward. "Uh, first married fight?"  
  
Nick nodded. "Yeah, I guess. One minute we were talking about renting out her condo and the next she's mad at me. Somewhere between her suggesting we needed a storage unit and me saying that she has a lot of stuff, she got pissed off."  
  
Catherine chuckled. "You told her she had a lot of stuff?"  
  
Nick nodded. "Uh, huh." His brow was still furrowed.  
  
Catherine smiled and put a hand on Nick's shoulder. "Nicky, let me give you a little advice. Whatever you think the fight is about isn't what it's about."  
  
Nick looked even more confused. "What?"  
  
Catherine chuckled. "You think it's about too much stuff. She might think that it's about something else. Whatever it is, you need to remember that you're building a life together and it can be really scary."  
  
Nick nodded, still not completely clear.  
  
Catherine leaned over and whispered into Nick's ear. "Besides, half the fun of fighting is getting to make up."  
  
A smile began to spread over Nick's face. 


	3. Chapter 3

Fortunately for the sake of the lab, Sara was working on processing a car in the garage. She was pissed and she was taking it out on the vehicle. The noise it was generating; however, was drawing attention quite a distance down the hallway and most everyone was staying clear of the area. That is except Warrick.  
  
He stood in the doorway watching Sara for a moment before he stepped inside and then immediately had to dodge something flying towards his head. "Whoa, Sara."  
  
She glanced up and was immediately apologetic. "Sorry."  
  
He looked at her with concern. "You doing ok?"  
  
"I'm fine. Why?" Her response was a little too forced.  
  
"Because half the lab is afraid to come down here right now, and quite honestly, you don't look ok." Warrick wondered what had transpired to make her this upset. Only a few hours before she and Nick seemed happy, sickeningly so.  
  
Sara rolled her eyes and crossed her arms in front of her body as she let out a snort. "He thinks I have too much stuff. Me. Does he realize just how much stuff he has? I mean his place is bigger than mine, so maybe it doesn't seem that way, but what does he expect me to do? Why should I be the one to get rid of all my stuff?"  
  
Warrick watched with interest as Sara worked herself further into a frenzy. He cleared his throat. "So this is about Nick then?"  
  
Sara looked on the verge of tears. "Yeah." There was a bit of a squeak in her voice.  
  
Warrick smiled. "Sara, have you talked to him about this?"  
  
She nodded. "That's when he told me I have too much stuff."  
  
Warrick tried to restrain a chuckle. "So you haven't really talked about it then."  
  
Sara looked at him curiously. "So you're taking his side?"  
  
Warrick put an authoritative tone into his voice. "Sara, I'm not taking sides, I haven't even talked to Nick."  
  
Sara looked a bit sheepish. "Oh."  
  
Warrick let out a deep breath. "Sara, you need to talk to him and work this out."  
  
Sara's expression reflected stubbornness. "He needs to apologize."  
  
Warrick chuckled and Sara glanced at him a bit annoyed. "Does he even know what he did?"  
  
Sara pouted her lips in an attempt to restrain a smile. "He said he didn't."  
  
"I don't know what's worse; you two fighting or being nauseatingly cute." He quipped.  
  
Her voice had a distinct whine. "He should know what he did."  
  
Warrick raised an eyebrow in amusement. "Oh, and why is that? Can Nick read minds?"  
  
"No." Sara finally admitted.  
  
"So you'll talk to him then." It wasn't a statement, it was more of an authoritative statement.  
  
Sara huffed. "Fine."  
  
He chuckled. "It's not like you're being sent to the electric chair, Sara. You married him because you love each other, but happily ever after is a fairy tale."  
  
She smirked. "I'm beginning to realize that."  
  
Just then, Grissom stopped in the doorway with a concerned expression on his face. "Is everything ok in here? Hodges just stopped in my office and said something was wrong down here."  
  
Warrick covered for Sara. "You know how Hodges is, Gris. Everything is fine. Sara was just having a little trouble with this car and I thought I'd stop and help."  
  
Grissom looked at Warrick over the rim of his glasses. "Don't you have your own case?"  
  
Warrick nodded. "Yeah, she just needed to borrow a little muscle for a moment."  
  
Sara tried not to laugh.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Sara ended up working several hours into the next shift and had to postpone showing Greg the condo. By the time she got home, Nick was asleep. She wasn't sure why that upset her, but it did. She changed into her pajamas and crawled into bed next to him with tears streaming down her face. The more she tried to stop them, the more upset she became. She didn't realize that she was sniffling until she felt Nick's arm around her waist and his lips against her cheek.  
  
"Hey, babe, it's ok." His voice was laced with sleep, but it was soft and soothing.  
  
Sara's voice hitched. "I'm sorry, Nick. I didn't even tell you why I was mad."  
  
"Shh. It's ok, honey." Nick soothed, kissing her cheek and pulling her towards him.  
  
She rested against his chest. "I'm afraid."  
  
Nick's eyes were closed and his chin rested on top of her head. "What are you afraid of?"  
  
Sara's voice was small. "I'm not sure."  
  
"I'm sorry that I said that you had a lot of stuff." Nick kissed the top of her head.  
  
Sara sniffled. "It's not about that."  
  
"What is it then?" Nick was confused.  
  
She sniffled again. "I've been Sara Sidle my whole life. No one knows who Sara Stokes is."  
  
It was all Nick could do to not laugh. "Honey, you're the same person."  
  
Sara started crying. "But you got to keep your last name."  
  
Nick stroked her hair. "You didn't have to change your name."  
  
"So this is my fault?" Sara was tired and unreasonable.  
  
Nick pulled her against him tightly. "No, babe. It's nobody's fault. I'm just saying if you want people to call you Sara Sidle, you can. You don't have to go by Sara Stokes."  
  
"But I married you." She sniffled.  
  
"Yes, you did." Nick couldn't hide the amusement in his voice.  
  
"I want everyone to know that I married you, that's why I changed my name." She wasn't making a lot of sense to Nick.  
  
He furrowed his brow as something finally occurred to him. "Hey, Sar. I'm sorry that we haven't made this place more ours than mine."  
  
Sara didn't say anything, she just sniffled and began tracing lazy circles on his T-shirt with her fingers.  
  
"I've lived here so long that I guess I didn't really think about the fact that there's more me here when you walk in than us." He continued. "Maybe I should go through my stuff and clear some things out so we can get the rest of your things over here."  
  
Sara's voice was small. "You would do that for me?"  
  
Nick lifted his head and looked at her in the dim light. "I'd do just about anything for you, Sar."  
  
Sara smiled. "I love you."  
  
Nick kissed the top of her head. "I love you too." 


	4. Chapter 4

It wasn't until Nick heard a yelp and a string of curse words that he realized that he hadn't put the toilet seat down. In an effort to try and not wake him, Sara had apparently not turned on the bathroom light. He pulled himself out of bed and padded toward the bathroom and flipped the light on. He was met with an angry glare from Sara who was trying to save her dignity and dry her tush at the same time.  
  
He flashed a sheepish grin her direction. "I'm sorry, babe, I guess I forgot to put the seat down."  
  
"You think." Sara snapped at him and then let out a deep breath instantly regretting it.  
  
Nick frowned. "I said I was sorry."  
  
Sara closed her eyes and let out a sigh. "Nick, go back to bed."  
  
"Can I do anything to help?" Nick was at a loss.  
  
She smirked. "Nick, I think I can pee alone. Go back to bed."  
  
He turned obediently and crawled back into bed, rolling onto his side and trying to get comfortable. A few minutes later, he felt a rush of cool air and then Sara's warm body spooning against his back.  
  
She slung her arm across his waist. "Nick, I'm sorry. I just didn't want to wake you after you pulled a double."  
  
He rolled onto his back and reached up and caressed her face. "I'm sorry I forgot to put the seat down."  
  
She leaned down and kissed him. "I should have checked. I live with a man now."  
  
He chuckled softly. They had been married now for nearly two months. Things hadn't exactly gone smoothly. Not that they didn't love each other, they did, but at times the communication that had been so easy when they'd been just friends had become a bit more difficult. Nick surmised that it had a lot to do with the fact that they lived and worked together and their expectations for each other had changed.  
  
"How'd your case go?" Sara knew that Nick had been in court after shift that morning to testify and he'd ended up being the last on the billet.  
  
He let out a yawn. "Good I think." He looked at her in the dim light filtering through the blinds. "I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking earlier. I should have put the seat down."  
  
She nudged him in the ribs. "Hey, it's ok. I should have looked. I just didn't expect to go for a swim and at least you flushed. If you hadn't I think I would have had to bathe in Non-Oxynal 9"  
  
He chuckled. "I really am sorry."  
  
"I know." Sara leaned down and kissed him before resting her head on his shoulder and slinging her arm over his waist. "Just don't let it happen again."  
  
He grinned in the semi-darkness as he wrapped his arms around her and drifted off to sleep.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Nick looked nervous as he sipped his coffee at the break room table. He had been mulling something over in his mind and he finally decided to try and broach the subject with Sara. The last time he'd brought it up though, they'd ended up fighting.  
  
Sara noted his expression and she looked at him curiously. "What's up?"  
  
They still had about a half an hour until the beginning of shift and were taking advantage of the relative calm before the proverbial storm that each shift tended to be.  
  
He smiled. "I was just thinking that maybe we should sell the condo."  
  
She furrowed her brow. "Which one?"  
  
He paused his coffee cup midway to his mouth. "Both."  
  
She looked a little confused. "But Greg's renting mine."  
  
He nodded and set the cup down on the table. "I know, but I was talking to him and he would be interested in buying us out."  
  
She looked slightly surprised. "He would?"  
  
Nick smiled. "It's a nice condo, and he really likes it."  
  
"But I thought we didn't have enough equity." Sara recounted his words.  
  
Nick let out a deep breath. "I've been doing a little research and even if we take a slight loss on your condo, there is enough equity built up in mine that it would offset it and give us a nice down payment on a house."  
  
Sara bit her lip nervously. "You want to buy a house?"  
  
He studied her for a moment. "Or a townhouse, or something that we both pick out that maybe is a little bigger than where we are now. I just think that it would be nice to have a place that says 'us'."  
  
Sara considered his words for a moment before speaking. "Uh, this isn't a hint that you want kids is it?"  
  
Nick looked a little surprised. "No. I mean, I'd like them someday, when you're ready, but that thought really never occurred to me." He looked a little hurt as well that she seemed to think that he wouldn't just come out and tell her what he was thinking.  
  
"Oh." There was something about her response that was almost disappointed.  
  
Nick almost did a double take. "Do you want kids?"  
  
She glanced around to make sure they were still alone and a faint smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. "I'm thinking about it."  
  
Nick raised an eyebrow. "Thinking as in someday, or thinking as in thinking about trying?"  
  
She coughed nervously and gestured almost imperceptibly toward the door where Catherine had just appeared.  
  
Nick glanced up at Catherine who was headed directly for the coffee machine. "Catherine."  
  
Catherine smiled and could tell she interrupted a private conversation. "Did I interrupt something?"  
  
Sara looked directly at Nick. "Nothing we can't finish talking about later."  
  
Nick was grateful that Sara wanted to finish the conversation, but as shift was about to begin, he was sure he wasn't going to be able to keep his mind on work that night. 


	5. Chapter 5

Nick could hardly concentrate on work that night. The four words that Sara had spoken earlier had thrown him for a loop. 'I'm thinking about it'. What did she mean by that? Did she want kids at all, or was she considering that they should be starting a family soon? Was he ready to be a father? Warrick noticed his inattentiveness. "Nick, what planet are you on tonight?"  
  
He looked at Warrick with an open mouth. "Huh?"  
  
"Where is your mind?" Warrick was not all that amused because he knew if you didn't pay attention at a crime scene you could miss things and compromise evidence.  
  
Nick closed his mouth. "Sorry."  
  
"Why don't you take a break and clear your head." Warrick suggested gesturing toward the front door of the house they were processing.  
  
"Uh, sure." Nick stood up and headed towards the outside of the house still looking confused. He wasn't sure how long he'd been leaning against the side of his Denali when his cell phone rang. "Stokes."  
  
"Nick, are you coming back, or did you decide to drive to Reno first?" Warrick had an edge of concern in his voice.  
  
"Uh, sorry, I'm coming back in now." He ended the call and replaced the phone on his belt, turning and heading back into the house.  
  
Warrick studied him and could tell that standing outside for twenty minutes had done nothing to clear Nick's head. "Hey, what's going on?"  
  
"Huh?" Nick looked at him blankly.  
  
Warrick shook his head. "Your mind is clearly not at this crime scene. What gives?"  
  
Nick wasn't sure if Sara would want him telling anyone about their conversation before they had a chance to finish it, but at the same time, he knew that Warrick wouldn't say anything. "Uh, Sara and I were talking before shift and I suggested that we sell both condos and buy a house. Somewhere in there kids came up in the conversation. Catherine came in before I could clarify what Sara meant."  
  
Warrick looked intrigued. "Kids came up in conversation how?"  
  
Nick smiled and rested his hands on his hips. "I asked her if she wanted them and she said she was thinking about it. I'm just not sure whether that's wants them ever or wants them sometime in the near future."  
  
Warrick chuckled. "Well, we still have a crime scene to process here, man. You might as well try and focus because shift isn't going to get over any sooner and I know she's not going to discuss it with you on the phone."  
  
Nick nodded. "Yeah, I know."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When Nick got back to the lab, shift had been over for some time and Sara had already gone home. It was all he could do to drive the speed limit. He only hoped that she wanted to continue the conversation they had started earlier. He didn't think he could sleep until he knew what she was thinking.  
  
When he walked through the front door, he noticed that only the light above the stove was on. Nick furrowed his brow, hoping that she wasn't asleep yet. He set his cell phone and keys down and kicked his shoes off as he made his way down the hallway to the bedroom. As he cracked the door open, he noticed that Sara was asleep on top of the comforter in her pajamas with a copy of a forensics journal lying open across her chest.  
  
He smiled and made his way over to the bed, gently crawling onto it and lying down next to her as he grabbed the journal and tossed it off the bed.  
  
Sara's eyes fluttered open and a smile began to spread across her face as she noticed Nick's proximity. "Hey, I didn't mean to fall asleep."  
  
He grinned and leaned over and kissed her softly. "Did you eat?"  
  
She shook her head. "No, I was going to wait for you." She furrowed her brow. "What time is it anyway?"  
  
"I had to stay a few extra hours." He smiled. "What do you want to eat?"  
  
She stretched and yawned. "Nothing really. I wanted to finish our conversation from earlier."  
  
Nick looked relieved.  
  
Sara noticed his expression and an unreadable expression crossed her face. "You've been thinking about it all night, haven't you?"  
  
Nick looked a little embarrassed. "Yeah, I have. If Catherine hadn't walked in when she did, I might have been able to concentrate a little better tonight."  
  
Sara giggled. "My poor baby." She leaned in and kissed him.  
  
Nick looked anxious. "Are you going to tell me?"  
  
She reached over and trailed her fingers along his lips. "I want kids, Nick. I'm just not sure when."  
  
Nick couldn't help but smile. "What about the house?"  
  
Sara smiled. "Maybe if we have a house, then maybe I might be ready to have a baby."  
  
"But you're open to selling both condos and buying a house?" Nick wanted to clarify.  
  
She grinned. "Yeah, I think we should look into that." She leaned in and kissed him again. "Then we can talk about having a baby."  
  
"But you want them someday." Nick just wanted her to say it again.  
  
She nodded, amused at his disbelief. "Yes, I want kids someday."  
  
Nick was quiet for a moment and then looked at her with a wistful expression. "Uh, so how soon after buying a house would you want to talk about having a baby?"  
  
Sara smirked. "Can we talk about that after we buy a house?"  
  
Nick looked sheepish. "Sorry."  
  
She giggled. "Nick, we have time. I want to enjoy being with you for a while, without any distractions. Well, any distractions besides you."  
  
He raised an eyebrow mischievously. "But you do want kids."  
  
She nodded and smirked. "And you'll be the first person I'll tell when I'm ready."  
  
"But you wouldn't mind if I distracted you in the meantime." Nick inched closer to her on the bed.  
  
"I wouldn't want it any other way." She grinned, beginning to unbutton his shirt as he leaned in and kissed her. 


	6. Chapter 6

Catherine regarded Sara curiously. She had noticed a few things about Sara over the past several weeks that had raised a few flags in her mind. As they worked the crime scene, Catherine decided to just be direct. "Sara?"  
  
"Got something, Cath?" Sara glanced up wondering if her colleague had found anything that seemed significant.  
  
Catherine shook her head and a smile played at her lips. "Not yet."  
  
"What do you need?" Sara wondered; she had been looking at the surface of a dresser quite intently with her flashlight looking for any trace material.  
  
"Can I ask you a personal question?" Catherine smiled pleasantly.  
  
Sara wasn't sure what sort of personal question Catherine had in mind. "Uh, sure."  
  
Catherine cut to the chase. "Are you pregnant?"  
  
Sara looked shocked. "Pregnant? Why would you think that I'm pregnant?"  
  
Catherine looked as if she didn't quite buy Sara's disbelief. "Uh, no offense, but you've been moody, I've seen you cry, and you look like you've gained a little weight."  
  
Sara chuckled softly as she regarded her coworker. "No, Catherine, I'm not pregnant. I just think my stupid birth control pills have been wrecking havoc with my system. Trust me, if I was, you'd know about it. I don't think Nick would be able to keep something like that quiet."  
  
Catherine looked at her and smirked. "So Nick wants kids soon then?"  
  
Sara looked a little embarrassed to be discussing something she was still trying to figure out the timeline on herself. "Uh, we're talking about it."  
  
Catherine smiled. "He'd be a good dad."  
  
Sara nodded. "Yeah, I think he would too. I'm just not sure what kind of mom I'd be."  
  
Catherine wrinkled her brow. "You know what, Sara? I used to think that I would be a horrible mom."  
  
Sara looked surprised. "You? You're one of the best moms I know."  
  
Catherine grinned. "Thanks. You should give yourself a little credit, you might be surprised. I bet you'd be a good mom, Sara. You've got something that I never had, a guy who loves you more than life itself."  
  
Sara smiled. "He is pretty great, isn't he?"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Sara muttered a curse under her breath as she tried to button her favorite pair of jeans.  
  
Nick glanced over at her with a raised eyebrow. "What's wrong, honey?"  
  
Sara's had her face all screwed up in frustration. "Nothing fits."  
  
"Uh, I didn't mean to shrink them when I did laundry last week." Nick knew he should have left Sara's clothes alone when he did laundry, but he didn't think he could go wrong with denim.  
  
She rolled her eyes. "You didn't shrink them, I'm fat."  
  
Both of Nick's eyebrows went up cautiously. "Uh, Sara, you and fat in same sentence just doesn't work for me."  
  
Sara smirked. "Thanks for the backhanded compliment, baby, but I think I've gained weight."  
  
Nick looked perplexed. "You're not eating any more than you did before we got married." He looked at her with a seductive expression. "And we certainly have been getting plenty of exercise."  
  
She laughed in spite of herself as she looked for another pair of slacks to wear. "Well, I think I'm going to have to go shopping, these birth control pills are doing a number on my system."  
  
Nick smiled. "Hey, we're supposed to meet the real estate agent after shift, he's got a couple of houses he wants us to look at."  
  
Sara tossed yet another pair of pants aside. "Well, you may be going alone if I can't find any clothes that fit."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"So, did you like the house?" Nick looked at her expectantly. They had just finished looking at four houses and were finally headed home to get some sleep.  
  
Sara yawned. "Yeah, it was nice. They were all nice. The last one had the best location, but it's kind of big for just the two of us."  
  
Nick looked at her wistfully. "Well, if we have kids, we'll need the space."  
  
Sara looked at him with an expression that told him not to press the issue too much at the moment.  
  
He smiled. "Hey, don't worry, when you're ready and not a moment before."  
  
She smiled and closed her eyes. "Thanks." She was quiet for a few moments as Nick drove. "Hey, can we stop by the store and pick up some ginger ale or something? I'm starting to feel a little nauseous."  
  
"Maybe you're coming down with something. You have seemed a little more tired than normal lately." Nick looked concerned.  
  
"I'm sure it's probably just what I had for breakfast." She smiled and glanced over at him. "I really did like that last house better than the others."  
  
Nick grinned. "So should we put an offer on it?"  
  
Sara considered his words for a moment. "Wouldn't we have to sell the condo first? I mean, it helps that Greg qualified to buy mine so easily, but we can't really afford two mortgages."  
  
Nick nodded. "We could do a contingency sale. The agent said the seller might be willing to work out some sort of arrangement with us."  
  
Sara smiled. "Well, let's make an offer then."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Can you tell Grissom that I'm sick, baby?" Sara whined with her eyes closed.  
  
Nick was worried. Since he'd known Sara, she'd never been sick. "Yeah, but do you want me to stay home and take care of you?"  
  
Sara chuckled softly and instantly regretted it. "Nick, if I need something I'll call you. I think I just need to sleep this bug off."  
  
Nick leaned down and kissed Sara on the forehead. "Ok, honey, I'll call you a little later. But I'd rather stay with you."  
  
Sara opened her eyes. "So I can make you sick too? I don't think so. Go to work, I'll see you later."  
  
Nick kissed her forehead again. "I love you."  
  
"Love you too." She closed her eyes again wishing for sleep to overtake her. 


	7. Chapter 7

Nick crawled onto the bed where Sara lay and leaned over and kissed her softly.  
  
She opened her eyes and smiled. "Hey, how was work?"  
  
"A couple of B&Es, nothing too involved." His fingers caressed her cheek. "How are you feeling?"  
  
"A little better, but not good." She whispered in response.  
  
Nick furrowed his brow. "I guess you don't want to go out and celebrate our four month anniversary then."  
  
Sara winced. "I don't think the idea of food in general sounds good right now."  
  
Nick studied her for a moment. "Honey, I think maybe you should go to the doctor. Since I've known you, you've never been sick."  
  
She nodded. "I made an appointment already. Will you drive?"  
  
"You really don't feel good, do you?" Nick was worried.  
  
Sara shook her head.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Sara leaned her head against Nick's shoulder as they waited at the doctor's office. Her thoughts drifted as they waited to be called back to an exam room. How she had not admitted to herself just how amazing Nick was sooner, was beyond her. It took a trip to Texas and his nosey family to get them both to admit their feelings. A smile played at the corners of her mouth.  
  
Nick noticed the change in her expression and chuckled. "What are you thinking about?"  
  
She looked up at him, her smiled beginning to broaden. "Texas."  
  
He grinned and leaned down to kiss her. "I have some good memories of Texas too."  
  
She giggled. "Have I mentioned lately that I'm glad we went to visit your family?"  
  
"I'm pretty glad we went to visit them too." He kissed the top of her head.  
  
"Sara?" A nurse stood in the doorway glancing out at the patients assembled in the waiting room. They followed her back to the exam room. The nurse began by taking Sara's temperature and blood pressure. "So, you're not feeling well I take it?"  
  
Sara shook her head. "I think I've picked up some sort of bug."  
  
"Hon, you were mentioning something else yesterday about your birth control." Nick interjected.  
  
The nurse looked at Sara curiously for a moment before writing on her chart.  
  
"Yeah, I think the dosage might need to be adjusted, I'm gaining weight and one of my coworkers told me that she thinks I'm pretty moody." Sara recounted.  
  
"Well, that's not that unusual, but the doctor should be able to do something to alleviate some of your symptoms." The nurse continued to write on her chart before looking up and smiling. "Dr. Cole should be with you in just a few minutes." She turned and headed out of the exam room, leaving Nick and Sara alone.  
  
Nick looked a little sheepish. "I didn't know that birth control pills could have those kind of side effects."  
  
Sara smirked. "Just to name a few."  
  
Nick furrowed his brow. "Maybe we should think about some other form of birth control. I feel badly that it's making you feel like that."  
  
Sara smiled. "That's sweet, Nick, but this is the most convenient and quite frankly, most of the time I don't think that's the first thing on either of our minds."  
  
He leaned over and kissed her just as the doctor walked in. Nick had a grin on his face as he noticed the amusement on Dr. Cole's face.  
  
"Sara." The doctor greeted her and then turned toward Nick. "I'm Amanda Cole, you must be Nick."  
  
He shook the doctor's hand. "Good guess."  
  
"What seems to be the problem today?" Dr. Cole studied Sara.  
  
"I feel like crap." Sara smirked. "I think I might have picked up some kind of bug; I started throwing up last night."  
  
"You didn't tell me that, honey." Nick looked concerned.  
  
"That's why I made the appointment, baby." Sara smiled.  
  
Dr. Cole let out a chuckle. "Ok, well, your temperature is normal and so is your blood pressure. The nurse mentioned that you want to change the dosage of your birth control. Can you tell me what kind of symptoms you're experiencing?"  
  
Sara glanced over at Nick for a moment before she spoke. "Well, I've gain enough weight that I can't seem to fit into any of my jeans, these are actually Nick's."  
  
Nick looked a little surprised. "Oh, hey, no wonder I couldn't find those earlier."  
  
"Sorry, honey, I haven't had time to go shopping." Sara looked slightly amused. She turned back towards the doctor. "I seem to be really moody lately too."  
  
The doctor nodded. "Ok, I'm going to take a little blood and I'll need a urine sample too."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Well, the blood work will take a couple of days, but I think I know why you're not feeling well, Sara." The doctor looked as if she was trying to restrain a smile.  
  
"Is it the flu?" Sara furrowed her brow, hoping that the nausea would go away soon.  
  
She shook her head. "Uh, not exactly."  
  
"What do you mean?" Sara asked a little confused.  
  
"For the time being, I'm taking you off of your birth control. I think that some of your symptoms have been magnified from the hormones in the pills. And quite frankly, you're not going to need them for a little while." Doctor Cole watched as confusion clouded Nick and Sara's faces.  
  
"I'm not sure I understand." Sara muttered, still clearly confused.  
  
Nick didn't say a word, he just stood there in a daze.  
  
The doctor smiled at Sara. "I suspect that you'll start feeling a little better in a few days."  
  
Sara raised an eyebrow. "A little better, why not a lot better?" Sara had a panicked quality in her voice as all the possibilities of what disease she must have entered her mind.  
  
The doctor pursed her lips together to restrain a chuckle in consideration of Sara's expression. "Morning sickness usually lasts a few weeks to a few months. It really differs with each woman."  
  
Shock registered on Sara's face. "Morning sickness."  
  
The doctor nodded. "I'll want you to come back in a week or so for an ultrasound so we can tell just how far along you are."  
  
"I'm pregnant." Sara muttered in disbelief.  
  
The doctor smiled. "Yes, Sara, you're pregnant."  
  
Nick finally broke out of his reverie. "We're having a baby."  
  
"Congratulations." The doctor smiled at the couple.  
  
Sara just sat there in utter shock, completely dumbfounded that she was in fact pregnant. 


	8. Chapter 8

Neither Nick nor Sara said a word as they drove back to the condo from the doctor's office. They were both still in complete shock that Sara was pregnant, and Nick wasn't sure if Sara was taking the news well.  
  
He pulled the Denali into the driveway and glanced over at her. "We have to tell Grissom."  
  
Sara nodded numbly. "Yeah." She didn't move from her seat until Nick came around the vehicle and opened the door.  
  
"Sara." He put his hand on her thigh and caressed it with his thumb. "Let's get some sleep, ok?"  
  
She nodded and took Nick's hand as she descended from the vehicle. They walked into the condo wordlessly and headed straight to the bedroom. She didn't bother to undress, she simply crawled on top of the comforter and hugged a pillow.  
  
Nick looked at her with a worried expression and crawled onto the bed next to her, brushing a stray hair out of her face. "Honey, are you ok?"  
  
Sara looked at him and as she registered his concern, the corners of her mouth twitched upward. "I'm sorry, I think I'm just still in shock."  
  
"How are you feeling?" He was also concerned that she might throw up.  
  
"I don't feel great, but I think now that I know why I don't feel good, I don't feel as bad." She smiled a bit wider.  
  
"We made a baby." He smiled at her and leaned in and kissed her softly.  
  
She smiled against his lips, searching his eyes as he pulled back. "I'm not sure I'm ready for this. I mean, I know that you'll be a great dad, but I'm not sure how to be a mom."  
  
He flashed her a lopsided grin. "I don't know how to be a dad any more than you know how to be a mom. But I'm sure that any one of my sisters would be more than happy to give you more advice than you could possibly ever want."  
  
Sara chuckled softly, reaching over and tracing his features with her fingertips. "I can't believe we're going to have a baby."  
  
Nick placed his hand on her abdomen. "Boy or girl?"  
  
She raised a curious eyebrow. "What do you mean?"  
  
"Do you want a boy or a girl?" Nick couldn't keep his excitement out of his voice.  
  
She smirked. "It doesn't matter what I want, the sex has already been determined."  
  
"What do you think it is?" He leaned over and kissed her.  
  
Sara chuckled softly against his lips, murmuring. "I don't know."  
  
As Nick pulled away he glanced at the pillow Sara was still clutching. "I suppose I should try and get used to this."  
  
Sara looked at him quizzically.  
  
He smirked. "In a few months, this is going to be you." He reached over and patted the pillow.  
  
Sara was not amused and smacked him with the pillow. "I don't want to be fat."  
  
Nick looked apologetic. "Honey, there is a difference between fat and pregnant."  
  
She smirked and hit him with the pillow again. "You tell that to my favorite pair of jeans."  
  
Nick raised an eyebrow and grabbed the pillow tossing it off the bed. "Well, right now you're wearing my favorite pair of jeans."  
  
"See, I'm already fat, I'm wearing your clothes." She feigned a pout.  
  
"Oh, so now you're calling me fat?" Nick reacted in mock indignation.  
  
Sara smirked. "You're not fat, you're built. Nicely I might add. I particularly like your ass."  
  
Nick chuckled. "You know, there are a couple of advantages to you being pregnant."  
  
She raised a single eyebrow. "What?"  
  
Nick waggled his eyebrows as he inched closer to her. "Well, we don't need birth control for one." He leaned down and kissed her, softly at first and then more deeply as she opened her mouth to him.  
  
When they broke apart a few minutes later, Sara was a bit breathless. "What's the other advantage?"  
  
Nick chuckled. "Well, it's just an observation, one that I think I'm going to enjoy."  
  
She raised an eyebrow. "What's that?"  
  
He whispered in her ear. "I've noticed that your boobs are bigger."  
  
Sara couldn't help herself, she started laughing.  
  
Nick looked a little sheepish.  
  
Sara pursed her lips together in an effort to stop laughing. She reached over and caressed his cheek. "You're cute. About as horny as a teenage boy, but cute."  
  
He smirked. "What? I can't appreciate my wife's amazingly sexy body?"  
  
Sara raised an eyebrow and leaned toward him, her lips a fraction of an inch from his. "You'd better appreciate my body, because it's only going to get fatter." There was an edge of warning in her tone.  
  
Nick smiled. "Curvaceous." He leaned in and kissed her making his intention clear as he slid his hand up Sara's shirt.  
  
Sara giggled against his mouth and pulled back smiling. "Have I told you today that I love you?"  
  
He grinned at her. "I love you too." He leaned in and kissed her again, deepening the kiss between them. He slid his hand from under her shirt and began to unfasten the jeans she wore.  
  
As they broke the kiss, Sara looked at him with amusement. "I thought you said you wanted to get some sleep."  
  
He raised an eyebrow at her and smirked. "I thought I'd get my jeans back first."  
  
Sara laughed. "Oh, and here I thought you found my being pregnant sexy."  
  
He grinned. "I do. We made a baby together. How can that possibly not be sexy?"  
  
She smiled. "I love you."  
  
"I love you too." He leaned down and kissed her again, slowly sliding his hand back up her shirt. 


	9. Chapter 9

Sara woke to the sensation of Nick's fingers splayed out protectively across her abdomen and his lips against her neck. The corners of her mouth tugged upward as she felt him pull her back firmly against his chest. "I'm still pregnant, in case you were checking."  
  
Nick's chest reverberated against her back as he laughed. "I didn't mean to wake you up."  
  
Sara smiled as she heard him let out a sigh against her cheek. "Did you get any sleep?" She placed her hand over his and caressed it with her fingers.  
  
"Enough." Nick replied beginning to kiss her cheek.  
  
"What time is it?" Sara still hadn't opened her eyes.  
  
He chuckled softly. "I don't know."  
  
She smirked and opened her eyes, glancing over her shoulder at him. "Shouldn't we be getting up and getting ready for work?"  
  
He smirked back. "Depends."  
  
She raised an eyebrow. "Depends on what?"  
  
Rather than answer her right away, he leaned down and kissed her long and deep. Smiling as he pulled away. "Depends on how you're feeling."  
  
She chuckled softly.  
  
"How are you feeling?" Concern knit his brows together.  
  
She leaned up and kissed him softly. "I think I need to go to work."  
  
"Are you feeling nauseous?" Nick looked at her with a paternal expression.  
  
Sara giggled. "Not this second."  
  
A sheepish grin spread across his face. "Sorry, this is new to me. I just don't want you to feel sick."  
  
She smirked. "It's new to me too, but from what the doctor said yesterday, I think it goes with the territory."  
  
He leaned down and kissed her again, finally pulling away reluctantly. "I guess we should get ready for work."  
  
She kissed him once more, and let out a deep sigh. "Yeah, we need to tell Grissom."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A good hour before the beginning of shift, Nick and Sara walked into the lab hand in hand and neither one of them could erase the smiles from their faces. Despite the initial shock that Sara was pregnant, they were both excited at the prospect of becoming parents. Neither of them, however, was sure how Sara's pregnancy would affect her work status.  
  
In typical Grissom like fashion, the nightshift supervisor was already in his office seated at his desk reviewing case files. He glanced up as he heard a tap at the door and as he noticed Nick and Sara standing there he smiled. "Sara, how are you feeling?"  
  
She smiled a bit nervously as she took a seat in one of the chairs in front of his desk. "That's what I wanted to talk to you about."  
  
Grissom regarded her comment curiously and raised an eyebrow as Nick closed the door and then took a seat next to Sara. The pieces slid together quickly for Grissom and he tried to restrain the smile that threatened to tug the corners of his mouth upward. "How far along are you?"  
  
Both Nick and Sara looked at him a bit incredulously. Finally, Sara stammered. "About ten or eleven weeks. How did you know?"  
  
Grissom chuckled softly. "Sara, in all the time I've known you, I've never known you to be ill. Yesterday you called in sick for the first time ever, and then today you come into my office with Nick and close the door to talk to me about why you're not feeling well. Not to mention that you appear to be wearing a pair of Nick's jeans." Grissom gestured toward her with his hand.  
  
Sara laughed nervously. "Uh, Gris, how is this going to affect my job?" Nick took her hand and squeezed it in encouragement.  
  
Grissom pursed his lips together for a moment and let out a deep breath. "To tell you the truth, I'm not sure that it will, at least for the time being." He glanced over at Nick who had a somewhat concerned expression on his face. "I think it would be best to make sure you don't work solo though." Relief seemed to wash over Nick's face.  
  
"So, I can still do field work then?" Sara looked relieved.  
  
Grissom took his glasses off and rubbed his temple for a moment. "For the time being, but if you feel sick, you might prefer to stay in the lab and do follow up."  
  
Sara let his words sink in and she bit her lip nervously. "You're just being nice. You just don't want me to contaminate a crime scene."  
  
Grissom tried to restrain a chuckle. "Sara, you are one of the best CSIs we have, and while I don't want the crime scenes contaminated, I also don't think you'd want to process one if you felt like you were going to throw up."  
  
"He's right, babe." Nick smiled gently at her, both of his eyebrows arching upward.  
  
Sara's brows knitted together in frustration. "I know, but I don't really want to get stuck in the lab all the time either."  
  
Nick tried not to laugh. "Hey, look at it this way, honey, at least you have a good reason not to work the decomps."  
  
She smirked at him and then started to laugh. "Ok, you're right." She glanced at Grissom and smiled. "You're both right." She glanced down at the slight bulge in her abdomen wondering to herself about what other things in her life would be altered by the new life growing inside of her.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Sara leaned against the counter in the break room sipping a cup of herbal tea with a grimace on her face. Giving up coffee cold turkey was not fun. Nick chuckled softly as he noticed the expression on her face. "Hey, honey, if it will make you feel better, I'll give up coffee too."  
  
She feigned a glare at him. "At least one of us should be allowed to stay awake."  
  
He leaned over and kissed her softly, somewhat surprised that she deepened the kiss right there in the break room. He raised a curious eyebrow at her as they pulled apart.  
  
She grinned. "You tasted like coffee."  
  
He chuckled. "Oh, so now you only want me for my coffee?"  
  
She smirked. "No, I really like your ass too."  
  
Nick grinned at her and took another sip from his coffee.  
  
Warrick sauntered in with Greg right behind him, and noticed Sara standing by the counter. "Hey, girl, how are you feeling?"  
  
She glanced at Nick and smiled before turning toward Warrick and Greg. "Pregnant."  
  
Both Warrick and Greg stopped in their tracks. Greg's jaw dropped and he stood there speechless. Warrick looked at her for a moment and then glanced at Nick who had a wide grin on his face. "You're serious."  
  
Sara nodded. "I'm serious."  
  
Nick slid his arm around her waist. "We're having a baby, man."  
  
"Wow." Warrick was dumbfounded and Greg just continued to stand there speechless.  
  
Catherine walked in and noticed the variety of facial expressions on everyone. She locked eyes with Nick for a moment and a smile spread across her face. She turned to Sara and grinned. "So, when are you due, Sara?"  
  
Sara couldn't restrain her smile as she remembered the conversation she and Catherine had had before. "In about six months."  
  
The guys all looked at Catherine with surprise. Nick chuckled. "How did you know?"  
  
Catherine grinned. "She's wearing your pants, Nick." 


	10. Chapter 10

Sara lasted about three hours into shift, and the smell of print powder of all things was what caused her to leave the crime scene long enough to throw up next to her Denali. Frustration lined her face as she tried to return to the scene, only to catch another whiff of the powder and have another wave of nausea wash over her. Catherine sent her back to the lab.  
  
She was sitting in the break room several hours later, trying to down some saltines and ginger ale without crying when Nick walked by. He had happened to glance over as he walked down the hallway and noticed her sitting there and was immediately concerned. Walking into the break room he sat down next to her and lightly touched her arm. "Babe, are you ok?"  
  
She snorted and the tears that she'd been able to keep at bay until that point were unleashed. "Stupid print powder. Of all the things to make me sick, print powder."  
  
Nick wrapped his arms around her and tried to soothe her with his voice. "It's gonna be ok, hon. Shhh. It's ok."  
  
She sniffled. "How can I work when I can't even dust for prints?"  
  
"We'll figure something out." He assured her.  
  
"I mean, you'd think that the blood or even the brain matter would have made me lose it, but no, it was print powder." She tried to laugh through her tears. "Maybe I should work the decomps."  
  
Nick chuckled at her quip. "That's my girl."  
  
Sara wiped at her eyes with her fingertips. "Have I mentioned that I hate throwing up?"  
  
Nick leaned over and kissed her forehead. "I love you, Sara."  
  
She smiled and leaned against him. "I love you too."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"I was waiting for a thud." Sara quipped as she hung up the phone.  
  
Nick chuckled. "Well, that is the second shock you've given your parents in less than a year."  
  
She smirked at him. "And it's all your fault too."  
  
He raised his eyebrows and leaned his face towards hers. "Oh, I'm pretty sure you were there too."  
  
She smiled. "And I enjoyed every minute of it too." She leaned in and kissed him. As they pulled apart, she smiled. "Your parents took the news much better than mine."  
  
Nick grinned. "They aren't the ones becoming first time grandparents."  
  
"Good point." She leaned in and kissed him again.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"What time is your appointment for the ultrasound?" Nick glanced over at Sara as he got ready for bed.  
  
"Four." She murmured as she hugged her pillow. Sara had spent a good part of the last three days in bed. After she'd gotten sick from smelling print powder, it seemed that almost every smell in the lab made her nauseous so Grissom had told her to take the rest of the week off. She hoped that once some of the effects of the birth control pills wore off, her morning sickness would tone down a bit and she could go back to work.  
  
Nick crawled into bed and spooned against her, wrapping his arm around her waist. "We should be able to get a little sleep before then."  
  
"Catherine and I are going to go shopping after that. She has the night off." Sara sounded like she was half asleep.  
  
Nick kissed her cheek. "Does this mean I can have my jeans back?"  
  
Sara chuckled softly. "I like your jeans. I may just have to keep them."  
  
Nick started to tickle her.  
  
Sara squealed. "Ok, at least until I'm too big to wear them."  
  
"Sara." Nick continued to tickle her until he had her pinned on her back and his lips were a fraction of an inch from hers.  
  
She raised a single eyebrow and her voice had an edge of a whine in it. "Nick, you have lots of clothes that fit you."  
  
His expression softened. "Ok, I guess I'll just have to find another favorite pair of jeans."  
  
She smiled and leaned up and kissed him.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Sara lay on the exam table, prepped for her ultrasound. Nick sat next to her excited for the first view of their baby. With the latest ultrasound technology you could see the features of the baby's face.  
  
The technician walked in and greeted them. "I'm Monica, you must be the Stokes."  
  
Sara smiled. "I'm Sara and this is my husband Nick."  
  
Monica smiled. "Well let's see your baby." She poured gel on Sara' abdomen and prepared to run the ultrasound over it. "How far along are you?"  
  
"About eleven weeks." Sara glanced over at Nick and grinned nervously. He took her hand and gave it a squeeze.  
  
As Monica ran the ultrasound over Sara's abdomen, her eyebrows shot up.  
  
Nick and Sara exchanged a worried glance. Nick spoke for both of them. "Is everything ok?"  
  
Monica's expression didn't reveal anything. "I just want your doctor to see something, don't worry, everything looks normal." She got up and disappeared for a few minutes.  
  
Nick and Sara didn't say anything, their expressions said it all. They were worried. Why else would the technician leave to get the doctor in the middle of an exam?  
  
Monica returned with Dr. Cole in tow a few minutes later and resumed the exam, pointing at the monitor and smiling at the doctor. Dr. Cole turned toward Nick and Sara and noticed the worried expressions. She tried to put them at ease. "You look worried. Don't be, everything is fine."  
  
Sara wasn't sure she believed her. Nick wanted a little more clarity. "Uh, if everything is ok, how come you needed to see the ultrasound?"  
  
Dr. Cole smiled. "Well, take a look at the screen and see if you can see what we see."  
  
Nick and Sara turned their attention to the screen and watched as the ultrasound showed a clear picture of a baby's face. Tears started to run down Nick's face. "Sara, that's our baby."  
  
She was grinning, but then froze as she saw something else. She turned to the doctor with a confused expression. "What's that?"  
  
Nick tried to see what Sara was pointing at and his jaw just dropped.  
  
Dr. Cole grinned. "That's your baby."  
  
Sara tried to let what she was seeing sink in. "But what did I just see?"  
  
Nick looked at the doctor with a shocked expression still on his face. "Is that, did I, are we?"  
  
Monica just continued smiling as Dr. Cole chuckled softly. "Sara and Nick, you're having twins." 


	11. Chapter 11

Catherine stood in the middle of Nick and Sara's living room with a huge grin on her face. "It explains a lot actually."  
  
Sara looked surprised. "What do you mean?"  
  
Catherine approached the subject carefully. "Well, when I was pregnant with Lindsey, I didn't really start showing until I was about five or six months along."  
  
Sara raised an eyebrow. "Five or six months?" She glanced down at her abdomen which was already starting to bulge slightly. "I'm only three months into this." Her face reflected a little panic as she looked over at Nick. "I'm going to be as big as a house."  
  
Nick did his best not to laugh and glanced at Catherine who shot him a 'tread carefully' look. He walked over to Sara and placed his hands on her shoulders and looked into her eyes. "Honey, it's physically impossible for you to be as big as a house."  
  
Sara furrowed her brows. "You know, you're lucky that I love you so much because, you're not funny."  
  
"Sara." Nick's tone was serious. "I know that I'm very lucky that you love me, I love you too."  
  
She smiled in spite of herself.  
  
He smiled too. "I don't care what size you are, Sara. You're carrying our children and I love you." To emphasize his point, he leaned in and kissed her softly, smiling as he pulled away. "Now go spend some money and buy yourself some new clothes so I can have my jeans back."  
  
Sara smirked. "What if I want to keep your jeans?"  
  
He raised an eyebrow, but before he could say anything more, Catherine interrupted. "Sara, by the time we're done shopping you won't want to wear his jeans. You're going to be one hot pregnant lady."  
  
Nick glanced over at Catherine and then grinned at Sara. "She already is."  
  
A faint blush crept into Sara's cheeks.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"I had no idea that there were this many cute clothes for pregnant women." Sara looked in the mirror as she took in her appearance.  
  
"Here, I've got more for you to try on, and then we can go grab a cup of coffee." Catherine handed her another pile of clothes.  
  
"I can't have coffee; the doctor told me I couldn't have caffeine." Sara groused.  
  
Catherine smiled. "Actually, one cup a day won't hurt, but you're right that you can't drink it the way you're used to."  
  
Sara hung the last of the garments up in the dressing room and smirked. "I think I'd rather spend my caffeine allotment on chocolate."  
  
"Smart woman." Catherine responded. "Now try those on."  
  
Sara emerged a few minutes later with a smile on her face. "I think I've just found my new favorite pair of jeans."  
  
Catherine chuckled. "I told you that you wouldn't want to wear Nick's jeans after we got done shopping."  
  
Sara smirked. "I don't think he's getting them back any time soon. It's too much fun to tease him with them."  
  
Catherine let out a deep throaty chuckle. "Sara, you never cease to amaze me."  
  
Sara smiled. "What? I'm not allowed to seduce my husband?"  
  
Catherine just laughed. "I didn't say that. You've just never struck me as the kind of woman that could keep up with Nick if you know what I mean."  
  
Sara deadpanned. "You obviously don't know me very well."  
  
Catherine chuckled. "You're right, I seriously underestimated you."  
  
Sara looked at Catherine with a devilish grin. "So, do you think they have lingerie in this store?"  
  
Catherine laughed again. "Don't worry, we'll find something that'll have Nick begging for mercy."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When Nick arrived at work that night, he tried to tone his smile down, however, as soon as Warrick walked into the break room and saw Nick leaning up against the counter sipping his coffee, he knew something was up.  
  
He nodded at Nick as he poured himself a cup of coffee. "Hey, man, how's Sara?"  
  
Nick couldn't restrain his grin. "She's amazing."  
  
Warrick chuckled. "Do you two realize how sappy you both sound?"  
  
Nick shook his head and continued grinning. "We got an ultrasound today."  
  
"How did that go?" Warrick asked taking a sip from his coffee.  
  
Nick pulled several printouts of the images from the pocket of his shirt. "Want to see the baby?"  
  
Warrick's eyebrows shot up as he looked at the first image. "Hey, you can actually see features."  
  
Nick nodded. "Yeah, the new technology is pretty amazing."  
  
Greg sauntered in. "Whatcha looking at?"  
  
Warrick glanced up. "Ultrasound of Nick and Sara's baby."  
  
Nick tried to suppress a smile.  
  
Greg glanced over and smiled. "Oh, hey, your doctor must have one of the newer ultrasounds."  
  
Nick nodded. "Yeah."  
  
Warrick studied the image for a moment and then glanced at Nick curiously. "Hey, I can see the baby there, but what's that?"  
  
Nick took a sip from his coffee to keep his smile at bay.  
  
Greg glanced at the image Warrick had referred to and glanced up at Nick with wide eyes.  
  
Nick just lifted both eyebrows and smiled.  
  
Greg just grinned.  
  
When Warrick looked at the next image his jaw dropped and he looked at Nick. "Is that what I think it is?"  
  
Nick nodded, unable to restrain his grin. "Yeah, that's exactly what you think it is."  
  
"Two?" Warrick wanted to clarify.  
  
Nick nodded. "Yeah, two."  
  
Grissom chose that moment to walk in. "Two what?"  
  
No one said a word.  
  
Grissom looked at the three men over the rim of his glasses. "Two what?"  
  
Nick took the image Warrick was looking at and handed it to Grissom. He couldn't help but grin. "Sara had an ultrasound today. We're having twins."  
  
Grissom glanced at the image and then up at Nick, his mouth just hanging open. 


	12. Chapter 12

"Sara, I'm home." Nick called out as he walked through the door of the condo. He set his keys and cell phone down and sifted through the mail as he kicked his shoes off. "Something smells good."  
  
"Hey, baby, how was shift?" Sara called out from the kitchen.  
  
There was something in her voice that made Nick look over and then stop in his tracks.  
  
Sara raised a single eyebrow at him and smiled devilishly. "Hungry?"  
  
Nick just stood there staring at her. From his vantage point from across the counter, it appeared that Sara was wearing a strategically placed bibbed apron and not much else.  
  
She smirked. "I'll take that as a 'yes'."  
  
Nick's mouth moved open and closed like a fish for a few seconds before he found his words. They came out in sort of a squeak. "You've been cooking."  
  
She chuckled. "Yes, I have, and I think you're going to like dessert." She raised both eyebrows to let him know what she was implying. "But you have to eat dinner first."  
  
Nick swallowed hard. Shift had felt especially long and he had wanted nothing more than to curl up next to Sara and kiss her senseless. There was just something about the fact that she was going to be the mother of his children that turned him on. "What are we having?"  
  
She smiled a little too innocently. "Eggplant Parmesan."  
  
He grinned. "Sounds good."  
  
She chuckled. "Well, we'd better eat soon because I'm afraid that if we wait too long, the window of time that this smells good will expire."  
  
"What can I do to help?" Nick could not keep his eyes off of Sara.  
  
She noticed his expression and grinned. "Nothing. Just sit down."  
  
Nick obediently sat down at the table, noticing that she'd already set it and lit a few candles. As she rounded the corner from the kitchen Nick noticed that all Sara was wearing were his favorite pair of jeans and the apron. Nick continued watching Sara as she sat down across from him and started to laugh at him. He raised his eyebrows at her quizzically.  
  
"Nick, eat." She grinned at him as if her dressing like that was an everyday occurrence.  
  
He speared a piece of the eggplant and hardly tasted it as his eyes were fixed on her. He grinned. "You're trying to torture me, aren't you?"  
  
Sara raised an eyebrow. "Torture."  
  
He nodded, still grinning. "Do you have any idea what I want to do to you right now?"  
  
She smirked as she ate another bite of her food. "Does this mean that I need to block the food network if this is what an apron does to you?"  
  
"Trust me, honey, it's not the apron that's turning me on." He took another bite of his meal and shifted slightly in his seat trying to find a more comfortable position since his jeans were starting to feel a little tight.  
  
Sara tried to stifle a grin. She made a mental note to thank Catherine later for her ingenious idea of how she could give Nick his jeans back. "Uh, is everything ok, baby? You're looking a little flushed."  
  
Nick took another bite of the eggplant. His voice was a little strained as he answered her. "Everything's fine."  
  
She grinned as Nick finished off the eggplant on his plate. "Do you want seconds?"  
  
The expression that crossed Nick's face reminded Sara of a little boy pleading for a puppy. "No, I'm good." He continued to watch every bite that went into her mouth.  
  
Sara watched him and purposely ate slowly. "You sure you don't want more. I made plenty."  
  
Nick shook his head. "I'm more interested in dessert."  
  
Sara ate the last of the eggplant on her plate. "I'm just going to clean up."  
  
Nick wasn't sure he could handle any more of this. "Sara." There was definitely a whine in his voice.  
  
"What?" She feigned innocence. "If I don't put it away now, who knows what the smell will do to my stomach later."  
  
Nick closed his eyes and let out a groan. "Let me help."  
  
Sara smiled. "No, honey, I just want you to relax."  
  
Nick's voice wavered as Sara leaned over and picked up his plate, giving him a nice view of what the apron was covering up. "Sara."  
  
She simply smiled and turned with plates in hand and went into the kitchen, rinsing the dishes before putting them into the dishwasher. She then took her time putting away the leftover food, watching Nick out of the corner of her eye.  
  
Nick on the other hand was having a difficult time keeping things under control. He knew exactly what would make him relax and sitting in that chair wasn't it. He gingerly stood up and looked over at Sara. "Are you sure there's nothing I can do to help?"  
  
Noticing his discomfort, Sara decided to take a little pity on him. "I'm done here, do you want dessert?"  
  
Nick closed his eyes and groaned again. "Sara, you have no idea how much I want you right now."  
  
She smiled. "Meet me in the bedroom, your children are stepping on my bladder."  
  
Nick didn't need any further encouragement. By the time he reached the bedroom door, he was clad only in his boxers.  
  
When Sara entered their bedroom a few minutes later she grinned at him. She was still wearing the apron and his jeans, and as she made her way over toward the bed, Nick stood up and pulled her into a hungry kiss.  
  
He murmured against her mouth. "You are far too overdressed." He began to plant kisses against her neck.  
  
"I thought maybe I could let you have your jeans back since my shopping trip was so successful." Sara murmured back.  
  
Nick chuckled against her neck as he made quick work of the apron and pulled her back with him onto the bed. The remaining articles of clothes found their way to the floor as Sara helped Nick relieve some of the tension that had built up during dinner.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Nick lay there with a huge grin on his face and Sara perched on her forearms across his chest. "That was some kind of damn exquisite torture, babe."  
  
Sara chuckled. "So I take it the apron was a good idea then."  
  
He looked at her with disbelief. "Hell, yeah."  
  
She pulled herself more fully on top of him and leaned down, her lips a fraction of an inch from his. "I'll have to thank Catherine for the idea."  
  
Nick raised an eyebrow and chuckled.  
  
Sara leaned down and kissed him, pulling back and grinning. "How would you feel about seconds?"  
  
Nick grabbed her butt and rolled them over, looking into her eyes with a grin. "Might even have to have thirds or fourths." 


	13. Chapter 13

"Sara, why don't you take a little more time off." Grissom suggested.  
  
Sara just looked at him with disbelief and frustration on her face before she burst into tears.  
  
"Sara." Grissom wasn't sure what do with her. This was her first night back after taking a week off to see if her morning sickness would improve. She'd been working alongside Greg in the DNA lab when a wave of nausea had hit her. She'd barely made it to the hallway before she threw up. The normally in control Sara that Grissom was used to being around had dissolved into an emotional puddle in front of him.  
  
Grissom's brow furrowed as he picked up his cell phone and punched in a number. "Nick, can you come to my office?"  
  
At the mention of Nick's name, Sara glanced up and started sobbing.  
  
Apparently it was loud enough that Nick could hear her on the other end of the line. Grissom's eyebrows went up in concern as he looked at Sara. "Yes, she's right here."  
  
Almost before Grissom could end the call, he heard the sound of someone running down the hallway. Nick had been in the garage processing a vehicle when Grissom had called and had sprinted to Grissom's office to see why Sara was so upset. Worry was etched on his face as he knelt next to her. "What's wrong, Sar?"  
  
She sniffled and sobbed for a few moments before she formed a coherent sentence. "I threw up."  
  
Nick glanced over at Grissom with a curious expression.  
  
"I suggested maybe she should take a bit more time off. She barely made it to the doorway of the DNA lab." Grissom informed him.  
  
Nick turned his attention back to Sara. "Honey, do you want me to take you home?"  
  
Sara shook her head and sniffled. "I feel so stupid. I just want to work and everything I smell in here just makes me feel nauseous."  
  
Grissom got up from his desk. "I've got to go check on something with Greg."  
  
Nick glanced at him gratefully before turning his attention back to his wife. "Sara, you're not stupid. The doctor said that it's good for the babies that you're not feeling well, it means that they're healthy." He was trying to make her feel better.  
  
Grissom closed the door behind him as he left his office.  
  
"You're not the one throwing up." Sara mussed.  
  
Nick took her hand and gave it a squeeze. "Look, I know that I don't know what you're going through here, but I love you, and Grissom's right. If you're not feeling well, you probably should go home."  
  
Sara sniffled. "Nick, I feel so useless. I'm damn good at my job but I can't do it because I might contaminate evidence or crime scenes."  
  
"But it's not forever, babe. Once the morning sickness passes, you'll be back, keeping everyone in line and showing us all up." He grinned at her.  
  
Sara sniffled and looked at him with a scared expression. "What if it doesn't pass? Did you know that some women have morning sickness all nine months?"  
  
Nick's answer was quiet. "No, I didn't know that."  
  
"And we didn't even get that house." Sara started to cry again.  
  
Nick wasn't sure what to say, it was obvious that Sara was very upset, and he knew that it probably had more to do with the hormones fluctuating in her body from the twins growing than any one event, although, having the house they both liked sold before they could put an offer on it hadn't helped. "We'll find another house."  
  
"When?" Sara's voice caught.  
  
Nick was quiet for a moment. "Hon, why don't you take some more time off? Meet with the realtor and see if you can find a house you like. When you do, then I'll come look at it too."  
  
The first hint of a smile began to tug at Sara's lips.  
  
"I mean it's hard to find time to look at houses with the hours we work anyway. You have some pretty specific things in mind that you want in a house, and I'm sure that I'll like whatever you find." Nick continued.  
  
Sara's voice was quiet. "Ok." She smiled at him. "I love you. I hate that I can't be at work, but I love you."  
  
"I love you too." Nick grinned at her and leaned in and kissed her softly.  
  
"I'm going to go clean my face up and find Grissom." Sara wiped at her tear streaked face.  
  
"Do you want me to take you home?" Nick offered.  
  
She smirked. "Well since we carpooled, that might be a good idea."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Nick sat on the bench in front of the lockers and rested his head in his hands. It had been a long shift and he was tired, but he wasn't sure he was ready to go home yet. Sara was two weeks into a month long leave of absence and she had seemed to enter yet another hormonally induced phase. Her neatness had been taken to an even higher level than normal and it seemed that if Nick so much as dropped a sock on the floor as he got ready for bed, Sara would burst into tears. As much as he loved her and as much as he wanted these babies, he wasn't sure how much more he could handle.  
  
Catherine noticed Nick's posture as she walked into the locker room. She sat down next to him and put a hand on his shoulder. "You want to tell me what's bothering you?"  
  
He glanced up at her and smiled. He really didn't want to talk to any of his coworkers about Sara, they all knew each other and he didn't think that it was fair to her.  
  
Catherine smiled. "Hey, it can be tough being around a pregnant woman. Sara's carrying twins so she's got even more hormones than the average pregnant woman."  
  
Nick let out a deep breath. "I just can't seem to please her. I did the laundry last week and she didn't think it was clean enough. I left a towel on the floor of the bathroom because she had decided to wash the bathmat and she freaked out."  
  
Catherine chuckled. "Sounds pretty normal."  
  
Nick raised a curious eyebrow. "Normal?"  
  
Catherine nodded. "Nicky, I think it's great that you're trying to please Sara, but you're doing it at the expense of being yourself. I don't think she'd really want that, do you? If she knew that you were treating her with kid gloves, I have a feeling she'd be pretty upset."  
  
Nick chuckled wryly. "Well, it seems that just about everything I've done the last three days has upset her."  
  
Catherine offered him a motherly smile. "Nicky, hang in there. Sara loves you, you love her. It's going to work itself out."  
  
"I'll just be glad when she stops throwing up and I can eat meat at home again." Nick quipped.  
  
Catherine chuckled. "We're all here for you, you know that don't you?"  
  
Nick nodded. "I'd better get home." He stood up and closed his locker and headed for the doorway.  
  
"Hey, Nick." Catherine called after him.  
  
He glanced back. "Yeah."  
  
"I hear you liked the apron." Catherine had a devilish grin on her face.  
  
Nick's cheeks flushed with color and an embarrassed grin spread across his face. 


	14. Chapter 14

"Nick, wake up." Sara poked Nick repeatedly in the side. Her one month leave of absence had turned into two as her morning sickness had not abated.  
  
"Mnnph." Nick was exhausted. He'd worked another half shift before he'd come home that day and he was getting precious little sleep as it was. Sara had taken to waking him up for one reason or another and Nick suspected that it had more to do with the fact that she was lonely rather than hungry.  
  
"Nick. I need something to eat." Sara poked him again.  
  
Nick groaned. "Sara, I'm tired."  
  
"Please." Sara leaned toward him and kissed his cheek.  
  
"Sara." There was a warning tone in Nick's voice.  
  
"Baby, please." Sara's voice was a little too sweet.  
  
Nick nearly growled. "Sara, I'm tired. Why can't you get it yourself?" As soon as the words were out of his mouth he knew that she was going to be upset, as for once his fatigue outweighed his concern for her feelings.  
  
Sara sniffled. "You don't love me. I'm getting fat and you don't love me." She turned away from him and started crying.  
  
Nick let out a deep breath and rolled towards her, putting his arm around her waist, his hand resting on her growing abdomen. "Honey, I do love you, I'm just exhausted and I need some sleep."  
  
"It's not fair." Sara sniffled.  
  
Nick thought for a moment before he opened his mouth to speak again. "What's not fair?"  
  
Sara was quiet for a moment as she sniffled. "You get to work and I'm stuck here all night by myself."  
  
Nick felt her hand covering his. "Have you met any of the neighbors?"  
  
"To do that I'd have to sleep at night, and then I'd never get to see you." Sara continued to sniffle. "I want to go back to work."  
  
"But if you're not feeling well, is that such a good idea?" Nick queried with a sleepy voice.  
  
Sara turned toward him still sniffling. "I feel worse just sitting around here all night by myself."  
  
"You know what, why don't you ask Grissom if you can come back and just do paperwork or something? I know it's not what you want to be doing, but I'm sure that the smell of the files won't make you sick." Nick reached over and wiped the tears from her eyes with his fingertips.  
  
She sniffled again. "Do you think he'd let me?"  
  
"Never hurts to ask." Nick yawned. "You know how much he dislikes doing paperwork."  
  
Sara smiled. "It seems to me that you don't like doing paperwork either."  
  
Nick chuckled. "I miss you too, honey. It's just not the same at work without you there." He leaned in and kissed her softly.  
  
"I really am hungry." Sara sniffled.  
  
"And I really am tired." Nick replied.  
  
"It's just that my feet are starting to swell all the time." Sara explained.  
  
Nick pulled her against him. "I didn't know, babe. I'm sorry." He let out a yawn. "What do you want to eat?"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Grissom looked at Sara skeptically over the rim of his glasses. "You're sure you'd be ok just doing paperwork?"  
  
Sara tried to contain her smile. "Grissom, I'm going crazy just sitting at home alone. Just ask Nick."  
  
"She's right." Nick nodded at Grissom. "Besides, Gris, you know how far behind we are on case files."  
  
Grissom chuckled. "Yes, I do." He studied Sara for a long moment. "I'm not completely convinced that this is a good idea, Sara." He let out a deep breath. "Just try and stay away from the DNA lab for the time being."  
  
Sara grinned. "Thank you." She turned toward Nick and leaned in for a quick kiss. "Honey, I'm so excited, I get to work."  
  
He grinned back at her. "I know, babe."  
  
"Sara, you can start with these." Grissom gestured toward a substantial stack of files on his desk. "Most of these just need a quick review."  
  
Sara stood up and waved off Nick's offer to help her carry them. "I'll just set myself up in the break room so I can put my feet up."  
  
Nick and Grissom exchanged an amused glance at Sara's excitement as she left. As Nick stood, he looked relieved. "Gris, I owe you one."  
  
"That bad?" Grissom queried knowing that Nick had looked fairly haggard for the last few weeks.  
  
Nick paused for a moment. "Gris, don't get me wrong, I love Sara and I'm excited that we're going to be parents, it's just that, well you know how much she loves her job. I think it's been really hard on her to not get to be here."  
  
Grissom nodded. "Well, it's good to have her back."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A surprised Greg walked into the break room and notice Sara sitting on the couch reviewing case files. "Sara."  
  
She glanced up and grinned. "Hey, Greggo."  
  
Greg's eyebrows shot up as he noticed how large her abdomen had gotten. She hadn't been into the lab in a while and even though she was almost five months pregnant, she looked more like seven. "Looks like those babies are growing."  
  
Sara glanced down and smirked. "I know they haven't left much room in here for anything else."  
  
Greg chuckled. "Are you feeling better?"  
  
She shook her head. "Unfortunately, no, but Grissom said I could do paperwork. I'm going nuts sitting at home by myself."  
  
Greg poured himself a cup of coffee. "Well, let me know if you need anything."  
  
Sara smirked. "Thanks, Greg, but I'm supposed to stay away from the DNA lab."  
  
Greg chuckled again as he remembered the last time she'd been in there. "I could just stock it with a few evidence bags if you feel sick."  
  
She laughed and shook her head. "I'd rather not throw up, but thanks."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"So Sara's doing paperwork, huh?" Catherine commented as she and Nick processed a B&E.  
  
Nick nodded with a chuckle. "And I can't tell you how glad I am that she's got something to do besides clean the house and wake me up so I can go to the store and buy her Chunky Monkey ice cream."  
  
"Just wait until she send you to the store for diapers." Catherine grinned. "You're doing a great job, Nicky. You two are going to be great parents."  
  
Nick smiled as he looked up. "Thanks, Cath." 


	15. Chapter 15

As Sara looked over the files, her brows began to knit together in concentration. She was about a third of the way through the stack when something occurred to her. She flipped back through the files and as she found the files she was looking for, her eyebrows curved upward. She reached for her cell phone and punched in Grissom's number.  
  
He answered on the third ring. "Grissom."  
  
"Gris, it's Sara. Look, I think we've got a situation here." Sara was staring at three files, comparing information as she talked.  
  
"Sara, where are you?" Grissom sounded concerned.  
  
"Don't worry, I'm at the lab. Look, I've been going over these files, and I think I found something that you should look at." She informed him.  
  
"Really?" Grissom sounded interested.  
  
"There seems to be a pattern with three of these files and none of them have been solved. I think we might be dealing with a serial here." Sara was still scanning the files.  
  
"Have you gone through all the files?" Grissom asked.  
  
"Not all of them, but I'm going to check through the rest of the files and then check the database for similar crimes and see what I come up with." Sara had a plan forming in her mind.  
  
"I'll talk with you when I get back to the lab." Grissom sounded pleased.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
When Nick arrived back from the scene he'd processed, he went to check and see how Sara was doing. He was surprised that she wasn't in the break room, but in one of the layout rooms instead. "Hey, babe. How's it going?" He looked at her with a mixture of concern and curiosity.  
  
She grinned as she looked up at him. "I think I may have figured out how I can do something besides close case files."  
  
Nick raised an eyebrow. "Are you feeling better?" He sincerely hoped that her morning sickness had suddenly disappeared for both of their sakes.  
  
She smirked. "Don't I wish?" She gestured toward the files laid out on the table. "I was going over these and found a pattern so I called Grissom. I think maybe we've got a serial."  
  
Nick leaned toward her and placed a soft kiss on her lips. "That's my wife, the genius CSI."  
  
"So after I finish reviewing these, Grissom said I should take a look at the cold case files and see if I can dig anything else up." Sara looked radiant.  
  
Nick put his hands on her shoulders and gently kneaded them. "How are you holding up?"  
  
She closed her eyes and smiled. "Well, aside from your children dancing on my organs and kicking me in the ribs every now and then, I'm fine."  
  
"Oh, so I see, they're my children when they misbehave." There was a teasing tone in his voice.  
  
"You better believe it. I swear we've got a professional athlete in here the way they kick." Sara quipped.  
  
Nick snaked his arms around her and rested his chin on her shoulder. "So you've got another ultrasound this week. Do you want to find out what we're having?"  
  
She thought about it for a moment and the let out a sigh. "I don't know. I mean it would be more practical if we knew what we were having, but I kind of like the idea of not knowing until they're born."  
  
Nick kissed her cheek. "I've got an idea. Why don't we have the doctor put the sexes of the babies in a sealed envelope and we'll give it to Grissom to keep for us in case we decide we want to know."  
  
Sara smiled. "You know, I knew there was a reason that I married you."  
  
Nick feigned a hurt expression. "I thought it was because I had a cute ass."  
  
Sara giggled. "There's that too. But you're smart and handsome too."  
  
Nick lowered his voice and whispered in her ear. "Well you're sexy."  
  
She grinned. "Ok, now that's the reason I married you right there. Anyone that can tell me that I'm sexy when I feel like I'm the size of a bus and make me believe that they mean it is pretty amazing."  
  
"Thanks, babe." Nick kissed her cheek again. "I need to get back to work; Warrick's going to wonder where I am."  
  
"I'm pretty sure he's figured it out by now." Sara quipped.  
  
Nick chuckled against her cheek. "Want to mess around when we get home?"  
  
Sara tried to restrain her smile. "Will you rub my feet?"  
  
"Anything you want." Nick replied loosening his hold on her.  
  
"Chunky Monkey ice cream?" She grinned hopefully.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Nick's hand splayed out over Sara's abdomen as he spooned behind her. She grinned as she put her hand over his. "I don't know how you do it, but you make me feel so sexy even when I'm huge."  
  
Nick kissed her neck. "That's because you are, and the fact that you're carrying my children turns me on."  
  
Sara tried to restrain her smile. "You know at some point, this is going to be nearly impossible."  
  
He chuckled. "I think it might be a bit more challenging, but I'm up for it if you are."  
  
Sara laughed in spite of herself. "I can tell."  
  
He kissed her neck again. "What did I tell you? I told you that you turn me on."  
  
"Ouch!" Sara sucked her breath in.  
  
"What did I do?" Nick sounded concerned.  
  
"You didn't do anything." She breathed deeply. "I just got a heel in my ribs. Kind of knocked the wind out of me for a second."  
  
Nick kissed her cheek. "You know I'd carry them for you if I could."  
  
She smirked. "You couldn't handle it."  
  
Nick looked at her with a slightly bewildered expression. "What's that supposed to mean?"  
  
She rolled her eyes. "It's a scientific fact that women have a higher pain tolerance than men, why do you think we're the ones that go through childbirth."  
  
He chuckled. "Ok, you got me there, but I'd still try if I could."  
  
"Well you can't so you'll just have to deal with the fact that your wife is the size of a whale." Sara quipped.  
  
"Sara, you're not the size of a whale." Nick began kissing her neck again.  
  
She rolled towards him and let out a sigh. "As much as I want you right now, we're going to have to exercise a little creativity on getting around this." She rested her hands on her belly.  
  
Nick grinned. "Well, I looked at that book Chelsea sent you and I think I have a few ideas." 


	16. Chapter 16

It seemed that the time away from the lab had produced something in Sara that gave her a bit more drive and determination when it came to reviewing the case files. By the time she'd gone through the entire stack of files that Grissom had given her, and then run a check through the database for similar crimes, she had found eleven crimes that bore a striking similarity. First of all, the same detective had investigated all of them, and the fact that Detective Harrison was seeking early retirement raised a red flag in Sara's mind.  
  
Over the next few weeks as Sara continued reviewing the cases, Brass was pulled in to see if internal affairs should be investigating Harrison. And by the end of the fourth week, it appeared that the good detective seemed to be cutting deals with career criminals to get a cut of their take. Not since Warrick had been wired to take down a judge had there been such ripples in the Las Vegas law enforcement community.  
  
Raging pregnancy hormones or not, Sara was on top of her game and everyone was glad she'd come back to work.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The call had come as sort of a shock. Nick and Sara had put house hunting on hold when Sara had returned to work. They just didn't have the time to look at every house that the realtor wanted them to see. But from the description over the phone, this house sounded perfect and as they walked through it, they knew they'd found the house they wanted to raise their family in.  
  
Things moved far quicker than Sara had anticipated. Within two weeks, they had bought a house and put the condo on the market. The house was set to close in another two weeks and they hadn't had time to pack a thing. To say that Sara was frantic was an understatement. Her abdomen made her look like she was overdue rather than six and a half months pregnant.  
  
"I can't even bend over far enough to put anything in a box." Sara was frustrated that her pregnancy was impeding her ability to pack.  
  
"Honey, I talked to Chels and she said she wanted to come out and help." Nick was trying to calm Sara down as she looked around the living room at all the things they needed to pack.  
  
Sara looked at him with disbelief. "Baby, we need a lot more than just Chelsea to help. We're going to have to take time off if we're going to be able to get everything packed and moved."  
  
"Do you want Chels to come?" Nick really wasn't sure what Sara wanted.  
  
Sara furrowed her brow. "I don't know, I just would hate for her to come out when I don't know how one person is going to be able to pack all of this up."  
  
Nick let out a deep breath. "I've got an idea, actually Chels suggested it, but I want to warn you, it's going to be chaotic and you might want to stay at Catherine's."  
  
Sara looked suspicious. "What?"  
  
Nick grinned. "Can you trust someone else to pack the condo?"  
  
Sara still looked a little wary. "Well, I'm not in any shape to pack, but what are you thinking?"  
  
He looked a little sheepish. "My whole family wants to come out and help. Well, except my parents and Michael and Susan, they volunteered to watch everyone else's kids."  
  
"They're all going to come help us pack? They won't all fit in here." Sara observed glancing around the condo.  
  
"Well, I mentioned that to Chels and she said that half of them could come out this weekend and help pack and the rest of them will come out the next weekend to help us move. Besides, they all really want to see you." Nick looked at her expectantly.  
  
"So, did you already tell them to come, or are you asking me if I want them to come?" Sara just wanted a little clarification.  
  
"I'm asking if you want them to come, but in any case, they want to help." Nick replied.  
  
Sara felt suddenly overwhelmed and started to cry.  
  
Nick pulled her into a hug. "Hey, what's wrong? It's ok."  
  
She sniffled. "I just didn't know how we were going to do this. I can't believe they'd fly here just to help us."  
  
"They love us, honey." Nick assured her.  
  
"I'm just so used to doing everything for myself, and it's been hard enough asking you and the crew at the lab to help me. I just can't believe your family would do that." Sara wiped at her tears.  
  
"That's what families do." Nick kissed her forehead.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
It didn't really take that long with all the extra hands to pack up everything in Nick and Sara's condo. And the next weekend, moving everything into their new house went smoother than Sara could have imagined. She was thankful when everything was in the house and when Chelsea offered to stay another week to help her unpack everything, she couldn't thank her enough.  
  
"I can't believe we moved." Sara just stood there in the living room of their new house staring at the front yard through the window.  
  
Nick slid his arms around her and rested his hands on her belly. "And we've got plenty of room in the backyard for a dog."  
  
Sara pulled away from him and turned around, raising an eyebrow at him suspiciously. "A dog?"  
  
He looked sheepish. "Every kid needs a dog."  
  
Sara smirked. "These kids still have a little while until they arrive and I don't want to be chasing a dog around too."  
  
"You wouldn't have to. I love dogs, you won't even know it's here." Nick's eyes pleaded with her as he smiled.  
  
"You know, Sara, he used to try this on my mom and dad all the time too. It never worked." Chelsea had overheard the conversation as she walked into the living room from the kitchen and was trying not to laugh at Nick.  
  
Sara tried to look stern. "We're not getting a dog, Nick."  
  
"But honey, who is going to keep you company while you're on maternity leave?" Nick offered.  
  
She raised an eyebrow. "What? Are you planning on living at the lab? I'm assuming that you and the babies are going to be company enough. We're not getting a dog."  
  
"Please, honey." Nick looked pathetic. "We have enough room in the backyard. Besides it's good for kids to grow up with a dog."  
  
Chelsea just stood there giggling. "Nick, you are pathetic."  
  
He shot her an annoyed look. "You're not helping, Chels."  
  
"Nick, we're not getting a dog." Sara sounded firm, although a smile was playing at the corners of her mouth.  
  
Nick glanced over at Sara. "Maybe after the babies are born?"  
  
Sara shook her head and started to giggle. "No." She stepped over and kissed him softly. "I love you, but we're not getting a dog. We haven't even unpacked the house yet."  
  
Nick leaned in and whispered in her ear conspiratorially. "I love you too, but we have unpacked the bedroom; want to mess around later?"  
  
Chelsea smirked. "I'm just going to go in the kitchen and make us all something for dinner so you two can be alone."  
  
Sara couldn't help but giggle as she whispered back. "You are the horniest man I know."  
  
"That's good, because you're the sexiest woman I know." Nick wrapped his arms around her shoulders and leaned in and kissed her. 


	17. Chapter 17

Chelsea glanced over at Sara and noticed a grimace flicker across her face. "Everything ok?"  
  
Sara glanced up and forced a smile. "Yeah, I just think maybe I've been overdoing it a bit." She had taken the last several days off to get the house unpacked while she had Chelsea's help and they'd been burning the candle at both ends.  
  
Chelsea smiled, but she was skeptical. She made a mental note to keep an eye on Sara while they finished hanging pictures on the wall. "Why don't you sit down for a few minutes."  
  
Sara smirked. "It takes twice as long to stand back up as it does to sit down."  
  
Chelsea chuckled. "I remember those days."  
  
Sara sucked her breath in again.  
  
Chelsea furrowed her brow. "Are you sure you're ok?"  
  
Sara didn't immediately answer. She took a couple of deep breaths as she leaned against the wall and then pasted another smile on her face. "Yeah, just tired."  
  
Chelsea wasn't buying it. "Sara, are you sure? You know, twins don't go full term a lot of the time."  
  
Sara registered a hint of panic on her face. "Uh, what are you saying?"  
  
Chelsea smiled. "Are you sure you're not going into labor?"  
  
Sara looked scared. "I've never been in labor before."  
  
Chelsea put down the hammer she'd been using and walked over to Sara, putting her hand on her arm. "C'mon, I think maybe you need to have your doctor check you out."  
  
Sara bit her lip and sucked her breath in again. She spoke through gritted teeth. "Are you going to call Nick?"  
  
Chelsea chuckled. "You better believe I am."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Nick and Warrick were processing the scene of a double homicide when Nick's cell phone rang. "Stokes."  
  
"Nicky." Chelsea tried to keep her voice even.  
  
Nick could hear the sound of an engine in the background. "Chels, what's up? I'm at a scene."  
  
"Well, you'd better get your little ass to Desert Palm because I think Sara's in labor." Chelsea told him very matter of factly.  
  
Nick's jaw dropped. "She what?"  
  
Chelsea had a hint of amusement in her voice. "Your wife seems to be in labor. If I'm right, you're going to be a daddy very soon."  
  
Nick heard something in the background that sounded like Sara moaning. "Is she ok?"  
  
Chelsea could hear panic building in Nick's voice, she kept hers calm but firm. "Nick, drive to Desert Palm right now, I'm taking Sara there. Everything is going to be fine."  
  
"Ok." Nick ended the call and glanced over at Warrick looking a bit shell shocked.  
  
Warrick studied him for a moment. "What's going on?"  
  
Nick didn't immediately answer.  
  
"Nick." Warrick's voice was a bit more insistent.  
  
Nick looked at him. "Sara's in labor. Chelsea's taking her to the hospital."  
  
Warrick tried to restrain a smile. "Get your ass out of here then. I think you have a hospital to get to . I'll tell Grissom."  
  
Nick just nodded and started to collect his things.  
  
Warrick waved him off. "Nick, man, I'll get your kit. Just go."  
  
A hint of a smile began to flicker across Nick's face. "I'm gonna be a daddy."  
  
Warrick chuckled. "Well you'd better get your ass to the hospital."  
  
Nick didn't waste another second. He left the crime scene and headed straight to his Denali, putting the siren and the lights on as he drove to Desert Palm. When he arrive, he sprinted to the emergency room in search of Sara. "I'm Nick Stokes, I'm looking for my wife. She's in labor."  
  
The nurse behind the desk smiled at him. "She's probably up in labor and delivery, but hold on a second and I'll see if she's been admitted."  
  
The few seconds that it took for her to look up the information seemed like an eternity to Nick and when she finally let him know where Sara was, he barely nodded his thanks before sprinting for the elevator.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"It's gonna be ok, Sara. Once they give you the epidural, you won't feel much of anything." Chelsea drawled comfortingly.  
  
"Where the hell is Nick?" Sara gritted her teeth as another contraction hit. She had indeed been in labor for several hours, but had not recognized the symptoms until they had gotten much stronger and closer together.  
  
"He'll be here. Don't you worry." Chelsea held Sara's hand and tried to reassure her.  
  
Sara's face screwed up as she tried to fend off the pain. "No one ever said it would hurt this much."  
  
Chelsea tried not to laugh. "Well, there's a reason that sex feels so damn good. If it didn't none of us would ever get pregnant."  
  
Sara chuckled in spite of herself as the contraction faded. "Ain't that the truth."  
  
"You ok for a minute? I think I'm going to go find your nurse and see what's taking Nick so long." Chelsea looked at her expectantly.  
  
Sara nodded. "Just tell him that he'd better get his sorry ass here because I sure as hell am not going through this alone."  
  
Chelsea smirked and then turned toward the doorway where she almost collided with Nick.  
  
"Is she ok?" Nick looked utterly panicked.  
  
Chelsea just gestured toward the bed. "She's going to be fine, but you might want to be careful what you say until she gets an epidural."  
  
Nick looked confused at what she said, but just brushed passed her toward Sara. "I got here as soon as I could."  
  
Sara glanced up and her lower lip quivered slightly. "It hurts."  
  
Nick grabbed her hand, worry flickering across his face. "What can I do, honey?"  
  
Another contraction hit Sara and she put a death grip on Nick's hand gritting through her teeth. "What the hell is taking the damn nurse so long?"  
  
"Do you want me to check? Do you want me to stay here?" Nick wasn't sure what to do.  
  
Sara glanced over at him and glared. "Shut up, Nick."  
  
He was taken slightly aback. "Ok."  
  
As the contraction passed, Sara looked over at him apologetically. "I'm sorry, baby."  
  
Nick leaned over and kissed her forehead. "It's gonna be ok, honey."  
  
Chelsea came back in the room. "The nurse should be here in a minute, she's just getting your IV ready and she said they paged your doctor."  
  
"Thanks, Chelsea." Sara managed.  
  
She smiled broadly. "No problem. Anyone else you want me to call?"  
  
Nick's mind went blank. "Huh?"  
  
Chelsea smirked. "You know, to tell them that you're having a couple of babies?"  
  
"Mom." Nick managed.  
  
Chelsea chuckled. "Right, I already called."  
  
Another contraction hit Sara and she squeezed Nick's hand hard enough to make him yelp. Chelsea raised an eyebrow in warning at him that he'd better not say anything. "I'm going to go get you some ice chips."  
  
Sara just nodded through her gritted teeth. "Shit! This hurts."  
  
Nick felt helpless, and as the nurse walked into the room with the IV, she looked at him with amusement. She carefully hooked up the IV and then glanced at Sara. "The epidural should start to lessen the pain in about five or ten minutes."  
  
Sara just nodded as she continued to grit her teeth.  
  
"I just spoke with your doctor and she should be here shortly." The nurse headed toward the doorway, glancing back with a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, you won't remember any of this once you see their faces." 


	18. Chapter 18

Once the epidural took effect, the pain that Sara was experiencing lessened somewhat. She was thankful that Chelsea was there to help keep Nick calm, because despite all of his training as a CSI he looked as if he might pass out.  
  
"Nick, why don't you take a walk for a moment and get some fresh air. The doctor said it's still going to be a little while. Besides, when was the last time you ate?" Chelsea shot him a knowing glance.  
  
Nick looked at Sara with panic on his face. "I don't want to leave you alone, honey."  
  
Sara tried to keep her breathing steady as she felt the drug dulled pressure of another contraction. "Baby, Chelsea's right. Go get something to eat." She would have laughed at the irony of having to remind Nick to eat if she hadn't been in labor. The man seemed to always be hungry.  
  
Nick raised an eyebrow doubtfully. "Are you sure?" He remembered some of her earlier words before the epidural had taken effect. He didn't think he'd ever heard Sara say things quite like that in his life.  
  
Chelsea chuckled. "Nick, go before she changes her mind."  
  
Sara nodded. "Just bring me back some ice chips."  
  
Nick leaned down and tentatively kissed Sara on the forehead. "I won't be gone long." He glanced back once before he disappeared through the door of the hospital room.  
  
Chelsea couldn't help but laugh. "Sara, he is so afraid of you right now."  
  
Sara chuckled. "I don't think I've ever yelled at him like that before."  
  
Chelsea reached over and took Sara's hand, giving it an encouraging squeeze. "Trust me, childbirth can make the most timid woman curse like a sailor."  
  
"I think I gave some sailors a run for their money then." Sara smirked, wincing for a moment as she felt the pressure of another contraction. "Damn, how did women do this before they gave you drugs for the pain?"  
  
Chelsea smiled. "We're tougher than men. You should have seen Kevin when I had Aiden. He actually did pass out."  
  
Sara looked at Chelsea in disbelief for a moment and then started laughing. "You have got to be kidding."  
  
Chelsea shook her head. "Nope. Something like a tree falling in the forest. He just went right over. Conner and Fiona went a little better."  
  
Sara rubbed her belly and glanced at Chelsea. "It's still hard to fathom that I'm having twins. I never thought I'd be a mom."  
  
Chelsea smiled. "I saw you with Fiona when you and Nick were in Dallas. I think you're going to be a great mom, Sara. I'm really glad you married my brother."  
  
"Me too, Chelsea." Sara grinned. "Me too."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The nurse had been right, as soon as Sara saw the faces of her babies, she wasn't even thinking about the hours of labor she had gone through. Nick sat next to her on the bed and they each held a child, completely awed by the miracle that each little life was.  
  
Nick glanced at Sara with a smile on his face. "I suppose we should have decided on names."  
  
Sara laughed softly. "Well, I think we both thought we had a little more time. I like your idea though."  
  
He grinned. "Good because Baby Stokes One and Baby Stokes Two don't really sound quite right."  
  
She smiled. "Can you believe how tiny their fingers and toes are?"  
  
"Well they are a little early, hon." Nick teased.  
  
She looked at him holding one of the babies and she felt a tear slide down her cheek.  
  
Concern flickered across Nick's face. "I'm sorry, babe."  
  
Sara shook her head. "No, I'm fine." She looked into his eyes. "I was just thinking that you're holding our child."  
  
Nick cradled the baby in one arm and reached over with his free hand to brush the tear from her cheek. "You look pretty amazing holding our child too." He leaned over and kissed her softly, glancing at the sleeping infant in her arms.  
  
Sara chuckled softly. "I had this thought right after the nurse handed them to me. I was thinking 'where is their mother?', but then I realized that I'm it."  
  
Nick couldn't help but laugh. "I know. I just seems so unreal that we're actually parents."  
  
"When did Chelsea say that your parents were going to be here?" Sara asked softly, not taking her eyes off of the child sleeping in her arms.  
  
"About noon. She was going to take them by the house first and get them settled in before they came to the hospital." Nick replied, trying to stifle a yawn.  
  
Sara studied Nick for a little while. "I think we should do it."  
  
He glanced up at her perplexed. "Do what?"  
  
She smiled. "The names that you suggested. I think that's what we should name them. I think they're perfect."  
  
"You're sure?" Nick asked, a smile beginning to spread across his face.  
  
She nodded. "Yeah, I'm sure."  
  
Nick leaned in and kissed Sara softly, searching her eyes as he pulled away. "I love you, Sara."  
  
"I love you too." She grinned at him.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Shift had seem particularly long for the nightshift CSIs. Once shift was over, they made their way to Desert Palm Hospital to meet the newest members of the Stokes family.  
  
Catherine softly tapped on the door of Sara's room and a few moments later, a smiling Nick opened it with a sleeping baby still cradled in his arms. Catherine couldn't help the smile that spread across her face as she looked at the peaceful face of the sleeping infant. "Oh, Nicky."  
  
Nick motioned for the rest of them to come in.  
  
Sara glanced up and smiled. "Hey, guys."  
  
"Wow, they're small." Greg remarked.  
  
"They're slightly premature, Greg. Lower birth weights are normal in multiple births." Grissom informed him in a succinct manner, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth as he looked at the twins.  
  
"Are you going to introduce your children to their Uncle Warrick?" Warrick couldn't hide his smile.  
  
Sara glanced at Nick. "Do you want to do the honors, Daddy?"  
  
Nick sat on the bed next to Sara smiling and turned his attention to the baby in her arms. "Everyone, this is Ainslee Rose." He grinned at his tiny daughter and then kissed Sara's cheek before touching the hand of the baby in his own arms. "And this little guy is Caleb Nathaniel." 


	19. Chapter 19

~*~ Two years and three and a half months later ~*~  
  
"Ainslee, honey, don't touch that." Sara gently chided her daughter who stood on a chair next to the counter where Sara stood preparing dinner.  
  
Ainslee tilted her head slightly. "Why, Mommy?"  
  
Sara smiled. "Because I said so, baby."  
  
"Why?" Ainslee was clearly not satisfied with Sara's answer.  
  
Sara raised a single eyebrow at the nearly two and a half year old. "Ainslee Rose, do you want to join your brother in time out?"  
  
Ainslee's brown eyes went wide and she shook her head vigorously. "No, Mommy."  
  
A shout came from the couch in the family room just off the kitchen. "I done, Mommy! Can I get down?" Caleb was sitting on the couch waiting for Sara to tell him he was done being in time out for dumping a potted plant on the carpet to search for bugs. Ever since 'Uncle Grissom' had shown him his collection of insects, Caleb had been searching for them everywhere.  
  
"Caleb baby, you still have three minutes. Mommy will let you know when you're done." Sara hoped that Nick would be home on time. It was their third anniversary and much had changed in their lives since the twins had been born.  
  
Initially, Sara had planned to be on maternity leave for a couple of months, but that had turned into almost a year. She didn't realize how tired she would be at first and then how much fun she would have being a mom to the twins, although it had its moments, and so after talking it over with Nick they decided to make some significant changes to their lives.  
  
Nick and Sara had discussed their careers at length and had come to the conclusion that they wanted to focus on their children first for a while and when the kids were older, they might consider furthering their careers beyond Vegas. So Sara decided to resign her fulltime status at the lab and just consult on a limited basis instead. Nick put in for a transfer to dayshift when Conrad Ecklie left Vegas to head up a lab in Louisiana and Catherine was promoted to dayshift supervisor.  
  
"I done!" Caleb yelled from the couch again.  
  
Sara smiled. "Ok, baby, you can come back now."  
  
Caleb wandered into the kitchen and looked up at Sara. "Is Daddy gonna be surprised?"  
  
Sara smiled at her son. He looked so much like pictures of Nick at that age that she wondered if he would look like him when he was older too. "I hope so, honey."  
  
"Can we watch Blue's Clues?" Caleb shot her a pleading expression.  
  
"Oh, Mommy, Blue's Clues!" Ainslee clapped her hands together and started to jump up and down on the chair.  
  
"Ainslee, careful." Sara reached over and picked Ainslee up and set her on the floor before she tipped the chair over.  
  
Ainslee looked up at her with wide eyes. "I'm sorry, Mommy."  
  
Sara chuckled. "I just don't want you to fall off the chair, honey."  
  
"Can we watch Blue's Clues? Can we? Can we?" Ainslee was joined by Caleb in her chant.  
  
Sara settled the twins on the couch in front of the TV and put a tape of Blue's Clues in the VCR. She had just put the eggplant parmesan that she had prepared into the oven when she heard the front door open. Before Nick had even had a chance to close the door, Caleb and Ainslee had slid off the couch and had ran towards the front door shouting. "Daddy!"  
  
Nick scooped Ainslee up and smiled as she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek. "How's my girl?" In the same move he had picked Caleb up by the back of the waistband of his jeans so that he seemed to be suspended in mid-flight.  
  
Ainslee giggled. "Caleb's silly."  
  
Nick feigned surprise. "Caleb? Where is Caleb?"  
  
"I down here, Daddy." Caleb and Nick played this game every night when he got home.  
  
Ainslee giggled again. "You know where he is, Daddy."  
  
The expression on Nick's face changed as if something had suddenly dawned on him. "Oh, no wonder my arm feels so heavy."  
  
Caleb was laughing.  
  
"Daddy, Mommy has a surprise." Ainslee spoke in a loud whisper.  
  
Nick raised his eyebrows at her as he walked into the kitchen carrying both children. "Oh, she does? Well I have a surprise for her too."  
  
Sara glanced up and smiled as Nick walked in. "Hey, baby."  
  
Nick grinned. "Hey."  
  
"Blue's Clues!" Caleb shouted realizing that the tape was still running.  
  
"Daddy, down please." Ainslee pleaded.  
  
Nick kissed her forehead and set her and Caleb down and let them make their way back to the couch. He looked over at Sara who seemed to be watching his every move. "What?"  
  
She grinned. "Oh, nothing, I just love watching you with our kids."  
  
He walked over to where she stood and slipped his arms around her waist. "You do, huh?"  
  
She nodded, looking in his eyes as she slid her arms around his neck. "It's very sexy."  
  
Nick smiled. "Well I think you're very sexy." He leaned in and kissed her long and deep. When they pulled apart, they were both a little breathless. "Happy Anniversary, Sar."  
  
She grinned. "Happy Anniversary." She leaned in and kissed him again, allowing herself to get lost in the moment until she felt someone pulling on her pant leg. She pulled away from Nick and they both glanced down to see Ainslee and Caleb staring up at her and Nick. "What is it, babies?"  
  
Caleb pointed toward the TV. "The tape's done."  
  
Nick chuckled and kissed Sara's cheek. "I'll take care of it."  
  
Sara watched as Nick found another tape to put in the VCR. She just couldn't seem to get over how good he was with their kids and she didn't want to. She marveled at how one decision had changed the course of their lives. If she hadn't knocked on his door that night, she would have missed out on so much that life had to offer. "Hey, I've got a surprise for you." Sara grinned.  
  
Nick glanced up at her and smiled. "So I heard."  
  
She leaned her arms on the counter and raised an eyebrow. "Do you want to know what it is?"  
  
Ainslee and Caleb started chanting. "Yes! Yes! Yes!"  
  
Nick grinned. "I guess I do."  
  
Sara had a mischievous expression on her face. "Ok, it's in the garage."  
  
Nick looked at her a little perplexed. "The garage."  
  
Sara nodded trying to look innocent. "Uh, huh."  
  
Nick headed towards the door that led to the garage through the laundry room.  
  
"What is it, Mommy?" Ainslee and Caleb really wanted to know what surprise Sara had gotten for Nick. The fact that she'd managed to keep it a secret from the kids she found pretty amazing herself.  
  
"No way!" Nick yelled from the garage. As he came back into the house, he held a squirming golden lab puppy in his arms. He looked at Sara incredulously. "You got me a dog."  
  
"Happy Anniversary, baby." Sara walked over and kissed Nick.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Several hours later, Ainslee and Caleb were asleep and the puppy that Nick had decided to name Maverick was settled on a cushion in the laundry room for the night.  
  
Nick glanced over at Sara as they finished up the dishes. "I still can't believe you got me a dog."  
  
She smiled as she looked at him. "I know how much you've wanted one. I just thought we were ready for a dog."  
  
Nick slid his arms around her waist and kissed her cheek. "I love you, Sara."  
  
She put the last dish into the drying rack and turned to face him, resting her hands against his chest. She smiled as she looked up into his eyes. "I love you too, Nick."  
  
He leaned in and kissed her softly, pulling away and smiling at her. "Did you find the gift I left you this morning?"  
  
She chuckled. "I did. Although I'd have to say that at least part of it seems like it's more for you than for me."  
  
He grinned. "Can I help it if I like to see my wife look even sexier than normal?"  
  
"I did like the earrings though." She leaned up and kissed him softly.  
  
Nick smiled at her as they pulled apart. "I noticed that you had them on." Nick leaned in and kissed her.  
  
Sara murmured against his lips. "I could model the other part of your gift if you want."  
  
Nick pulled apart and grinned. "I'd really like that."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Later they lay tangled together under the covers; Nick trailed his fingers up and down Sara's back as she rested against his chest. It occurred to him that he was going to tell Sara something earlier, but he'd been distracted by the dog. "Hey, hon?"  
  
Sara glanced at him. "Yeah?"  
  
"I almost forgot I've got a little surprise for you." There was a hint of amusement in his voice.  
  
She propped herself up on his chest. "What?"  
  
He chuckled softly. "Well, it's just some news actually; I was so distracted by Maverick that I forgot to tell you."  
  
"What is it?" She sounded curious.  
  
"Well, I've been offered a promotion to dayshift supervisor." Nick began.  
  
"Nick!" Sara was incredulous. "That's great, baby! But how? What about Catherine?"  
  
Nick chuckled. "Well, Catherine asked to be demoted."  
  
"What?!" Sara sounded shocked. "Why the hell would she do that?"  
  
Nick was having a hard time not spilling the entire story. "She eloped."  
  
"Eloped? Who the hell with?" Sara clearly was having a hard time fathoming this.  
  
"Greg." Nick wanted to let this little bit of information sink in a little bit.  
  
"Greg Sanders." Sara's voice was thick with disbelief. "You've got to be kidding."  
  
"No, I'm not." Nick continued, knowing that he'd saved the best for last. "Apparently it's been going on for quite a while. And that's not all."  
  
"What? She's not pregnant is she?" Sara was clearly shocked.  
  
Nick chuckled in the darkness. "As a matter of fact she is."  
  
~*~ The End ~*~  
  
Author's Note: Thanks to all the readers and reviewers. Each and every one of you is appreciated for your opinions and the time you've taken out of your day to read my thoughts. 


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